Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Fukushima's Fallout of Fear

Posted by Soulskill on from the only-thing-we-have-to-fear-is-fear-itself-and-radiation dept.

gbrumfiel writes "Experts believe that the many thousands who fled from the Fukushima nuclear disaster received very low doses of radiation. But that doesn't mean there won't be health consequences. Nature magazine traveled to Fukushima prefecture and found evidence of an enormous mental strain from the accident. Levels of anxiety and PTSD-like symptoms are high among evacuees. Researchers fear that, in the long run, the mental problems could lead to depression and substance abuse among those who lost their homes. In other words, even if no one develops cancer as a direct result of radiation, the health effects could still be very real."

4 of 124 comments (clear)

  1. So let me get this? by scsirob · · Score: 5, Insightful

    .. Are they saying that fear mongering will kill more people than the radiation from actual nuclear disaster? Wow.
    So that means, on the death toll scale:
    1. The actual Tsunami
    2. Traffic accidents from people trying to flee
    3. Stress related deaths
    4. Radiation related deaths

    --
    To Terminate, or not to Terminate, that's the question - SCSIROB
  2. A home is a terrible thing to lose by fnj · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Losing your home, let alone all your possessions, is a horrific thing to go through, no matter what the process of loss is: nuclear accident, hurricane, bankruptcy. I believe it is a more devastating loss than the one you have when you reach a certain age and the truth of your own mortality comes into full focus. Losing everything the day your own light goes out forever, there is a sense of loss in the anticipation, but there is no "you" to miss anything afterwards. Losing all your "stuff" on the other hand is the hurt that just keeps hurting.

  3. Re:This is about information policy by iYk6 · · Score: 5, Informative

    Or even more reason to be afraid...IIRC part of the problem was they weren't telling people how bad it really was wasn't it?

    That was the problem. By lying, officials were indirectly telling people that the nuclear disaster was so bad that they had to lie. Plus, not knowing how bad it is adds another layer of stress.

  4. Re:very low doses????? by BlackThorne_DK · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Please do me a favor. Don't go to the Grand Central Station with a geiger counter. Also stay away from Capitol Hill i D.C. and any other granite or marble building.
    Also bananas could be scary to look at, and flying to the east coast would also be a no-go.

    http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/reaction/interact/facts.html

    I wouldn't have you ramp up that nuclear fear too high, or you might be a part of statistics.

    Radiation is all around us, and the scientist are not even sure it is a bad thing.