Found this article from the Boston Globe on a subject that might of guys with Ukrainean kids.
Ukrainian children born with genetic mutations or harmed by
radioactive food form a new generation of Chernobyl victims who could pass
the accident's tragic legacy on to the next, specialists warned yesterday.
On the eve of Chernobyl's
16th anniversary,
specialists who have
worked in the region since
a reactor exploded and
spewed clouds of
radioactivity over much of
Europe said the fight
against radiation-related
illness was far from won.
''Today, 16 years after the
accident, there remain
some huge problems in
several regions ...
especially in terms of
children's health and in
terms of food,'' Olga Bobylova, deputy secretary of Ukraine's health service, told a
news conference.
''[In areas surrounding Chernobyl] meat and milk in the private sector have high
levels of radioactivity. ... There are also problems with the mushrooms and berries in
the forests. ... Such food can have a profound effect on health.''
Thousands of impoverished Ukrainians live in areas affected by radioactive
contamination from the plant, which exploded on April 26, 1986 in the world's worst
civil nuclear disaster.
To boost their meager daily meals they gather berries and mushrooms from fields and
forests still contaminated by radioactive debris. Many are unaware or reluctant to
think that the food remains a health risk so long after the accident.
''The state tries to give children good, clean food, but it cannot because of a lack of
funds,'' Bobylova said.
''We need this in the future.''
The specialists urged Ukraine and the rest of the world not to allow Chernobyl to
become a forgotten crisis - a term used first by the United Nations which hinted that
funds could run out as interest in the disaster waned.
Evgeniya Stepanova, a specialist in radiation-linked illnesses, said children were
becoming sufferers years after the explosion, which killed few people at the time.
The true casualty toll in the years since is a matter of intense controversy. Chernobyl
has been blamed for thousands of deaths in Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia and for a
huge increase in thyroid cancer.
''[Research] has shown genetic mutations in sufferers of Chernobyl, both adults and
children. ... Those children and adults are more likely to get cancer and pass on
mutations to their children.''
Radiation is known to cause genetic mutation, and the rate of certain cancers goes up
in areas exposed to nuclear fallout, scientists say.
Stepanova said it was time to turn the world's attention to those who had no choice
but to suffer the consequences and those who could unwittingly become the next
victims of Chernobyl.
''We have not paid enough attention to those people who are suffering,'' she said,
almost shouting.
''Among all the problems caused by Chernobyl, the genetic [mutation] problem should
come first. ... It is a huge problem.''
This story ran on page A21 of the Boston Globe on 4/26/2002.
© Copyright 2002 Globe Newspaper Company.
