PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES
You may wonder whether you should take steps to protect your family from radiation before you have complete information about a nuclear power plant accident.
SAFE AND INEXPENSIVE PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES
There are some simple steps you can take (like cleaning outdoor clothing carefully before coming into the house and washing garden vegetables) which are not difficult, carry no risk, cost no extra money, and may help you reduce your radiation exposure. For more details about safe precautionary measures, see the Reduce Exposure to Radiation section of this website.
RADIATION PROTECTION MEASURES THAT CARRY RISK
There are steps you can take to reduce radiation exposure which carry some risk, and which, therefore, you should not use as purely precautionary measures. An example is the use of potassium iodide, which may help protect the thyroid from radiation but may also cause negative side effects. For more information see the Potassium Iodide section of this website.
Note: If you think there may have been an accident, contact local government and plant officials and ask questions (see Plant Information section of this website). For tips about what kinds of questions to ask, see the Questions section of this website.
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