Cardiac computed tomography (CT) and other medical scans sometimes involve injecting a radioactive iodide dye into the bloodstreams of patients in order to highlight the produced images. But a new study published in the journal Archives of Internal Medicine has revealed that this radioactive dye can cause permanent thyroid damage, as well as cancer.
It would seem obvious that pumping doses of radioactive iodide dye hundreds of times higher than the maximum recommended daily exposure level of 150 micrograms (mcg) into patients' veins is a bad idea on all accounts. After all, the thyroid gland will uptake radioactive iodide in place of nutritive iodine when too much of it is present, which was a primary concern after the Fukushima nuclear disaster.
But some 80 million doses of iodide dye are administered to patients worldwide every single day, according to Reuters Health, despite the fact that there are much safer scanning methods available. And Dr. Brunelli, who admits that thyroid disease is responsible for a host of illnesses including heart disease, high blood pressure, weight problems, and sexual and psychological dysfunction says patients should still take the dye if their doctors recommend it to them.
