Brits in Japan Get Iodine Pills

BBC reports:

Britons in parts of Japan are being given iodine tablets as "a precaution" in case radiation levels increase from a quake-damaged nuclear power plant.

The Foreign Office said it was a "contingency measure" and people should only take the tablets if and when advised by the authorities.

Embassy staff were distributing tablets in Tokyo and Sendai on Saturday and will be in Niigata on Sunday.

The earthquake and tsunami is known to have killed more than 8,100 people.

However, police say 15,000 may have died in one prefecture alone - Miyagi. More than 12,200 are understood to be missing in those parts of Japan hit by the earthquake and tsunami.

Fears have been rising over levels of radiation leaking from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant which was hit by the 9.0-magnitude earthquake on 11 March.

The earthquake and tsunami it triggered crippled the plant's cooling systems and some radiation has leaked.

The decision to distribute iodine tablets was revealed by the Foreign Office in its updated travel advice to British nationals who have decided to remain in Tokyo and areas north of the city.

Proof of British citizenship is required to collect the tablets with priority being given to children and pregnant or breastfeeding women.

Stable iodine tablets are used to stop the body absorbing radioactive iodine and are effective up to six hours after exposure to radiation.

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