Demand for iodine tablets has rocketed in the UK and EU as the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine stokes fears of nuclear war.
UK manufacturer Oxford Health Company had a 15,000pc surge in page views for its tablets in March, compared to January, after a “considerable increase in demand for iodine” in the UK and Europe.
The Bicester-based firm said there has been “a huge uplift in products being ordered directly to Europe” and also a “big increase” in “white label enquiries” from other businesses wanting to sell iodine tablets.
Pete Burrows at the Oxford Health Company said: “The interest in the UK has obviously been increased but the bulk of the interest has been from European countries, especially ones nearer to the conflict.”
A number of online sellers have sold out of iodine pills amid a scramble by worried consumers to snap up supplies. During a nuclear explosion, radioactive iodine is released and could potentially lead to thyroid cancer. According to experts, however, the pills do not protect against other types of radioactive material.
After the huge uptick in orders, Oxford Health Company is donating any profits from sales of the iodine pills to charities based in Ukraine. Mr Burrows stressed that the company has not increased marketing for the supplements as consumer fears mount.
He added: “They probably shouldn’t be being used for that reason if something happens.”
Moscow has put Russia’s nuclear forces on “high alert” as tensions with the West mount in the wake of the attack in Ukraine. The US fears the Kremlin will threaten to use its nuclear weapons if the war drags on amid the Ukrainian resistance.
However, UK ministers have sought to play down the threat of Mr Putin turning to nuclear weapons as Russia struggles to make gains on the battlefield. Boris Johnson said last week that the nuclear threat is a “complete distraction”.
