Anti-radiation pills sales soar

iHerb.com
nukepills.com
Companies selling potassium iodide supplements have been swamped with orders despite officials saying it is unnecessary. Anti-radiation tablets have been selling fast in the US, despite advice that potassium iodide only works for those close to a 'nuclear event'. Medical authorities in California have warned against taking the drug, which can cause side effects. But that has not prevented nukepills.com from receiving "a new order every 30 seconds". "We are quite slammed with orders, but we are working as fast as we can to get orders out. Our phones are swamped, so please do not try to call," the US website advises. On Sunday the company tweeted: "Over 3,800 orders in 18 hours. Wow", and has since updated about its efforts to donate 50,000 potassium iodide tablets to Japan. The following day, nukepills.com was back on Twitter to report it was receiving a new order every 30 seconds, later adding that although it was out of stock of the drug, more was being shipped in. Similarly, fellow US company iHerb.com had sold out of liquid and tablet potassium iodide at the time of writing. - Adam Gabbatt