Nuclear security: truth and falsehood on the distribution of iodine tablets in the country of Brest

A distribution of iodine is organized because an attack or nuclear accident is imminent. FAUX

The Ministry of the Armed Forces, relayed by the Finistère prefecture, began a campaign to distribute iodine tablets in the municipalities on Monday January 20, 2025.

located within the perimeters of the specific intervention plans of the Brest naval base and the Île-Longue operational base. These nuclear installations are “likely to release radioactive iodine in the event of an accident,” she explains. But don't panic. Just because a campaign is launched does not mean an accident has occurred or that a nuclear attack is imminent. This measure is preventive. “Even if nuclear installations are safe and operated with great rigor, public authorities must nevertheless anticipate the possibility of radioactive release into the environment,” explains the prefecture. Following a major nuclear accident, the prefect may ask you to take stable iodine tablets. I do not live in the municipalities concerned, I cannot obtain tablets.

TRUE BUT

The Brest pharmacies participating in the distribution campaign all received boxes filled with several dozen boxes of iodine tablets. (Photo Le Télégramme/Brendan Michel) I should only take these tablets in the event of an accident or nuclear attack.

TRUE

There is no need to ingest these tablets preventively or regularly, “taking iodine tablets respects a precise dosage and is adapted to the age of the person”, explains a Brest pharmacist. As the Nuclear Safety Authority specifies, “the tablets must be taken immediately when the prefect gives the instructions and only at that time”, and adds that “to be effective, the iodine tablet must be ingested ideally in the few hours before the passage of radioactive particles and gases and at the latest in the 8 hours afterwards. Taking this stable iodine, which attaches to the thyroid, allows the latter to be saturated and no longer absorb radioactive iodine. But until a possible accident, these boxes must remain stored in the cupboards. This is the first time that a distribution has taken place in Brest.

FAUX

This distribution of iodine tablets, although rare, is not a first. Already in 2013, the City of Brest carried out a distribution for Brest residents who lived within a perimeter of 500 meters around the nuclear installations. Since then, this scope has greatly expanded. The last update of the specific intervention plans for the two naval bases in Finistère dates from November 2024, hence this new distribution. Note that the northern tip of Finistère is the third site in France with the most pharmacies concerned, after the Toulon and Lyon areas.