Radium Was a Miracle Product, Until it Started Killing People

People used to think radium had mystical healing properties, but then things went horribly awry.
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"In 2002, researchers at Stockholm University found that starchy foods, when heated to 120 degrees Celsius, created a kind of byproduct chemical called acrylamide. The chemical is produced by a reaction between asparagine, a non-essential amino acid, and certain sugars like fructose. Significantly, the chemical is not found in unheated foods."
How We Realized Putting Radium in Everything Was Not the Answer
www.theatlantic.com/health/ar...
"Beginning in the 1910s, the girls instructed to put radium in their mouths didn't bat an eyelash. They worked for the United States Radium Corporation painting the numbers and hands on watch faces and military instrument panels. Since the work required great detail, the women were told to "point" the small brush head with their lips, thus ingesting a small amount of radium every time. Each woman would repeat this hundreds of times a day."
Dark Lives Of 'The Radium Girls' Left A Bright Legacy For Workers, Science
www.npr.org/2017/04/22/5250630...
"Kate Moore's new book The Radium Girls is about the young women who were poisoned by the radium paint - and the five who sued United States Radium in a case that led to labor safety standards and workers' rights advances."
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This episode of Seeker was written and hosted by Matt Morales.

[@orhankeyvan]

_Takes a sip from my NukaCola_ Nice!!!

[@Root174]

I almost thought it was a Fallout video :P .

[@leerman22]

Now with Strontium-90!

[@nadurokorte9917]

Dont forget Nuka Cola Quantum with Uranium and Radium included.

[@theworldoverheavan560]

orhan keyvan fallout reference

[@victor070]

Lol i read it with the voice of that Steve Mre guy

[@Lexyvil]

I feel bad for those girls... Nothing is worse than doing something you don't know is slowly killing you.

[@gangatalishis]

Lexyvil that's what ppl do everyday when they go to work.

[@makmak-zt6md]

i would argue that its worse to do something that you know is slowly killing you. the first thing that comes to mind is smoking

[@Lexyvil]

True, I don't understand people who still do that while knowing its cons.

[@j.5314]

You have clearly never had an addiction

[@lloydgush]

Doing something you know is slowly killing you seems worst... you know, anticipation anxiety.

[@IndigoXYZ18]

Nuka Cola Quantum was a thing it turns out...

[@Swapnil638]

Lol Fallout memories :D

[@awkwardmoments1539]

It was a megaton bawmb

[@Shloeb]

I like this guy. He explains things in such a well-paced and simplistic manner. Good job!

[@goblins2k5]

Sure knows how to read a script.

[@EverlastGX]

person that makes him smarter than 90% of americans

[@7227falcon]

Oh, another patronizing comment on Americans! How original!

[@SueMead]

*+AriesMania* Well come on. It's not like his opinion is not based on evidence. You put Trump into the presidency. That says a lot.

[@Fluskar]

"americunts ate pretty stupid" Not how you spell are dumbass :)

[@unchainedwiththecapt]

If you wanna know more, check out "Radium City". It's about the luminous plant in Ottawa, Illinois. The only reason I know about it is it was directed by my ex-wife's grandfather. Really interesting and disturbing.

[@ultimate2635]

Unchained With The Captain, I never knew about that, and i live right next to that place lol

[@Oncus2]

It would not have happened if companies actually researched their product before advertising it. They lied all those people of it being healthy, when in fact they just made it up. Corporate greed is what killed them, and still companies are poorly regulated in this part.

[@GogiRegion]

A lot of people in the comments are saying things like microwaves and phones being the modern versions of this, but those people don’t f***ing understand the idea of ionizing vs non-ionizing radiation. Learn about things before you repeat them.

[@howardbaxter2514]

Thank you!

[@stephenmiller9009]

Alexis Harper yea ima start using a microwave after years of not just because you tell me it's ok

[@stephenmiller9009]

*you're an idiot for not using a microwave even though there's no health benefits of doing so*

[@MultiGreatNinja]

Drinker_Of_Milk nobody had died using a cellphone unless if it explodes like most cases.

[@MultiGreatNinja]

Drinker_Of_Milk pollution? global warming? change in diet of humans? parents smoking and using alchohol considering it is easier to access now it will keep increasing considering age of people drinking and smoking is lowering.

[@TheCharleseye]

I wonder if - when their bones broke - they gave off that little, blue spark of minty freshness...

[@davinator_peepo2102]

Charles Eye SMARTER EVERY MEME

[@swingmanic]

These poor women died in agony unable to eat or drink, they had blood and puss leaching out of abscesses that wouldn't heal, constant pain despite narcotics to help alleviate it! -- Not something to joke about in my view! www.google.com.au/search?q=radium+jaw+images&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjmwby3irfUAhWBMJQKHdkbDH4QsAQIJw&biw=1366&bih=638

Laughter is serious matter

[@laceneil4570]

Not all the Radium Girls died young; one that survived into her 90s was Charlotte Purcell. Her radium sickness manifested as a tumour in her arm and she chose amputation, which saved her life. She still suffered tooth loss and jaw issues but she lived to a ripe old age. Also, most people at the time weren't too bothered about a group of poor working class women dying; it was when a rich celebrity man (Eben Byers) died from radium poisoning (most of his teeth fell out, he had both jaws removed cuz they were crumbling to dust and holes formed in his skull; at the end of his life, he had to wrap his disintegrating head in bandages to stop it falling apart), that the general public began to take notice and the radium craze came to an end.

[@AifDaimon]

😂😂😂😂the commercial at the beginning of the video tho

[@suryanshsomani7916]

Hanif Huzairi lol

[@Root174]

It reminded me of Fallout lol.

[@rodolfoaguilar7756]

Clin9289 same lol

[@sueg2658]

Can you do a video about x-ray machines in shoe stores back in the 1950s? I remember having to put my feet in those things! I can only imagine what the exposure was to the workers in the shops. Thank you.

[@kristinwood8884]

Sue G I know this is an old post, but I had never heard of this. I have been watching videos about the machines. Absolutely insane.

[@marzipanmango]

I suspect it wasn't an issue for shoppers, since at most they would have been x-rayed a few times a year. But I wonder about the employees working with the machines for years :/

[@TricksyTrinity]

Uhh... so i lived in Gloucester City, NJ for upwards of 7 years. I moved there when i was about 16 and moved out of there when i was about 23 or 24. At the end of my living there i was told by a friend that also lived in the town that her children's doctor was giving them special pills because there was radium in the water for the city. Apparently, there used to be a radium factory or something right where they drew their water from. By 25 almost all of my teeth had broken off, and i was told by my dentist that i could loose what was left of my teeth and get dentures, or i could lose my jaw. I obviously chose to get dentures. I had an "infection" that wouldn't respond to any antibiotics. What i want to know is... could that have been caused by radium in the water?

[@TricksyTrinity]

I should also mention that my bones have been unusually brittle for years. I was told i had a calcium deficiency...

[@BananaMike780]

I would look into it, could definitely be the culprit

[@Mrwiseguy101690]

Sue the city

[@TricksyTrinity]

well, i moved out of Gloucester City about 5 years ago. I'd have to look into the statute of limitations on it.

[@lovingone]

Desiree Price did other people in the city experience the same?

[@SophiasIchor]

It's too bad no super-heroes ever came out of this.

[@mynaimrie]

lmfao. true 😡

[@shantanukulkarni007]

What super hero u want? Dial-Man or Jaw Breaker?

[@Numbers_Game]

I was thinking more along the lines of Radium girl, but Jawbreaker works too xD

[@macandcheese7042]

shantanu kulkarni LMAO

[@RamKumar-uq2gl]

Humans will die of such radiation through cancer

[@jozefstalin2618]

Name od Marie Curie was actually Maria Skłodowska-Curie, she was Polish but married French guy.

[@Saltsour]

Whats The difference other than The polish surname?

[@Vednier]

One important thing is not mentioned - while Radium girls was told what Radium is safe company engineers working with radium all used heavy lead-infused shielding, so they DID KNOW truth.

[@TheWarriorLV]

This makes me wonder about charcoal how it’s everywhere- food, drinks, make up, washes. I’ve wondered why it’s so big all of a sudden. I always took it as within the ground we walk on & for eye liner, so I was confused when it changed

[@SueMead]

Even in 1925, corporations were shafting their employees. And it is this reason why self regulation in the free market can never work to everyone's satisfaction. That corporations don't give a damn if someone gets irradiated, and then makes out the women had syphyllis is so despicable that the company should've been charged with defamation.

[@felix2315]

I realy liked my old glow in the dark alarm clock. Nowadays those have to "charge" in the sun and glow maybe for an hour.

[@Eshcole]

The sad part is we still haven't changed much when it comes to safety and prevention. We don't seek to prevent something from happening or make it safer until it actually causes someone critical harm, usually a large group of people or kills them.

[@samanthatollstam6302]

So here's what I'm wondering.... Clearly this was ingested by the masses and not everyone died or was effected in terrible ways. So... At which levels of ingestion does it become dangerous and at which levels is it survivable and possibly beneficial? Everyone talks about the dangers... But not everyone exposed was effected to such a degree. I want something more comprehensive. Because it was VERY popular to drink the radium water... What about those who only gained the beneficial effects and somehow escaped damages? Let's hear a story on them.

[@mthacks4297]

Idiots

[@BristolMatt]

This host is top notch! Keep giving him plenty to do! Thanks.

[@cobaltblue1975]

Interestingly, there was a very similar situation taking place in Ottawa Illinois involving radium dials. Read about the Radium Dial Company, and also if you can find it (its obscure) check out the 1987 Documentary: Radium City.

[@RayT70]

Thumbs up, reminds me of all the chemical and gmo experiments companies are performing on us today.

[@FRISHR]

Watching this video gave me radiation.

[@xWink]

True, because the visible light of the video coming out of your device's screen is a type of radiation :P

[@MJ-cq6gz]

I am radiation and I found this video cancer.

[@mirhasanoddname]

Aloso your body naturally emits radiation too so..

[@mr.freewill1769]

Wait what?? So one night i was on a beach digging some sand and i found a tiny( almost the same size of a salt) thing and its glowing blue and it just kept flickering and never stopped.. is that radium?

[@capiaqw4949]

I think is just a meterial based on sulfur without radioactive metal

[@Lexyvil]

Great Video~

[@773Spair]

This reminds me of how some people thought a compound with silver in it was good for health, but it eventually turned your skin blue and shortened your life.

[@MisterCOM]

Spair it is the

[@773Spair]

Do you mean, "...the compound with silver in it..."?

[@bishopioanlightoller5302]

I remember my mum telling me about the radium painters to get me not to point my brush with my lips when painting. It is so sad what happened o these ladies.

[@MadameMishka]

radium water, AKA bONE hurting juice

[@shannonchalmers7521]

I'm reading Radium Girls by Kate Moore right now and it details the horrific deaths of the girls who worked in the paint studios. Incredibly hard to read. Such a sad story.

[@henkiedebomb]

I like this guy, no homo

[@henkiedebomb]

x-posed 😨

[@xxxYouTunesxxx]

Anytime someone says they like some guy and feels compelled to let the world know they are not gay, that person is definitely gay

[@alvzcizzler]

Ty Winters Ur gay

[@alvzcizzler]

Ty Winters Then shut up gay boy

[@MiniWheats0326]

Cesar Alvarez I'm gay 🤗

[@mat2468xk]

Is it possible for an event like this to happen again? As in a product that we think is cool that is actually dangerous but we continue using it anyway because we don't really understand it until it's too late.

[@howardbaxter2514]

Sure, but steps are being taken to minimize the possibilities of it happening. Thing is, there are a lot of underlying factors about certain elements or chemicals that we don’t entirely understand, and are still trying to figure out.

[@khalilrazak6486]

So sad, RIP you amazing girl's.

[@MarkSentMe]

That ad for Tho-Radia, with the woman lit from under her chin, looks absolutely scary! I would have steered clear just based on that picture. I can see a horror movie with that picture.

[@markjason2]

Im still using this product I got radium soap. Is it safe now?

[@jaakkooksa5374]

James Mahaffey writes about these events in his book "Atomic Accidents: A History of Nuclear Meltdowns and Disasters: From the Ozark Mountains to Fukushima". The statement that the Radium Girls all died within a decade is contradicted by Mahaffey who writes that many actually lived into old age.

[@SHADERSOP]

Good video, this guys cool.

[@louweedgi7278]

The important question is thought, does it taste good?

[@frankword75]

Finally, a presenter in this type of videos who isn't trying to be funny. Keep up the good work

[@doitprojects5074]

wow its really helpful video

[@Vlican]

I wonder if something like that can happen in today's world...

[@jonnalgars2327]

Vlican Definetly... Sadly...

[@Cosmic-K9]

Why does the body mistake radium for calcium? I'm really curious because it is much bigger than calcium with 28 more protons in the nucleus. Do they have similar charges or is the geometrical chemistry similar?

[@dgamezonu2693]

TheRubberDuckie I imagine that they are both alkaline earth metals and have similar properties. That is probably why it is mistaken for calcium.

[@VincentGonzalezVeg]

How many people rubbed oxidized iron ore on them till we found out?

[@Adspecter]

Giving seeker daily to now this was a bad decision. Nothing has been uploaded for a month in that channel and it just sits there in the dust. -Former Seeker Daily sub

[@Tombee2]

There was a TV show episode on this what was it "dark science " I think it was really messed up.

[@xanderjames6510]

Radium has been obscured and is misunderstood.

[@minema7953]

Ah this made me think about the glorious radioactive princess, Marie curie , carrying a luxury but a sweet killer Radium.

[@heru-deshet359]

Is this where the term "you're positively glowing" came from?

[@adilahamed7589]

Can u do a video on ISRO

[@craigrudolph9477]

Okay but that guy was a snack

[@spilledtea3041]

Bish he a meal

[@akebalucas3998]

can you imagine what the disclaimer for these products would sound like today? 😂

[@rashidisw]

While faint glowing blue are factually accurate, why in most media such as comic, cartoon, movies, the radiation is Green?

[@howardbaxter2514]

Scare tactics.

[@denizbluemusic]

some watch hands glow green, some others glow orange.

[@jannchavez9257]

Please bring back seeker daily

[@tritontypebeat]

This should have way more views than it does

[@LiteraryStoner]

Kate Moore actually wrote a well written, well researched and heart-wrenching book about it. The book is called "The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women" and i've recently read and reviewed it on my blog here wickedjr89sbookblog.blogspot.com/2017/04/the-radium-girls-dark-story-of-americas.html to anyone interested i'd highly recommend it!

[@CatboyChemicalSociety]

RADIUM so amazing it literally makes your jaw drop!!

[@bryanmartinez6600]

Is it Gluten Free, Organic, and vegan. Whole foods can sale this.

[@Supernova094]

great host !

[@two-face1041]

My school did the play...it was fun

[@pyalot]

the dangers of radiation where actually known before the radium craze.

[@austinjimenez1699]

The new Phoenix song (JBoy) has the word radium in it :D

[@sion8]

How much of that Radium can we still find? I'm​ sure not all of it has broken-down yet.

[@denizbluemusic]

i have some radium watch hands

[@radiumtadiran1807]

I too feel bad for those great grand-grannies.... It should have been possible to wait for the EL (Electroluminescent Lighting) powered watches powered by Tiny Button cells.

[@dolphinboi-playmonsterranc9668]

Sounds like Fallout

[@steinal1169]

"Makes hair and skin glow? Must be safe."

[@sapphirewingthefurrycritic985]

God that just sucks.

[@jason4275]

They still should sell this today just put buy and use at your own risk.

[@amethystdawn]

just sitting here thinking about my jaw falling apart

[@vincentwesterband5698]

There's a reason why this video doesn't show pictures of the girls affected by Radium poisoning. They images are truly horrifying. Radiation in your bones is very, very bad.

[@SouthernInquirer55]

Kale? photo is of Swiss Chard, it seems.

[@louiesouthgate8347]

Remind me of Fallout

[@vincentblack7166]

When you wake up and your jaw is down your throat

[@adamstone897]

I think they confused cancer treatment with light beams but the method of application was wrong

[@johnfrancis7765]

Our cleverness may be the death of us, brilliant video

[@markncl100]

Who is that boy? and how do I get his number????

[@ApertureLabs]

Man, those were the days. At least we still have asbestos. “Asbestos is harmless!” Is a registered trademark of Aperture Laboratories dba Aperture Science.

[@haruhisuzumiya6650]

This sounds like Fallout tier satire

[@RRW359]

This is why I'm glad I wasn't born in the turn of the century. Between the Radium, crack, heroin, lead, and asbestos everywhere, I'm surprised anyone survived that period.

[@dennisvanruijven4489]

It's funny no one is talking about non-thermal non-ionizing electromagnetic radiation being carcinogenic and all...

[@howardbaxter2514]

You mean, visible light?

[@ericdavidson9974]

Found the bone hurting juice

[@MrCollin3301]

can anyone tell me where he got his shirt from?

[@Mksterk1998]

Your mom.

[@stana.281]

Killed a wild lumberjack for it

[@stifflery]

shopping mall

[@dot1754]

MrCollin3301 FREDDY COUGAR

[@theegyptian8699]

MrCollin3301 any clothing store in the world

[@mofkergt]

Do a video about margarine

[@hzlnlsmpht4611]

I first seen this in dark matter's one of the episode

[@SuperBearPoo]

Wouldn't stuff like this be avoidable if our government required companies to prove that their product isn't harmful to humans?

[@tendrop8254]

1:00

[@denizbluemusic]

There is a bit of misinformation on this video. Radium butter, condoms etc. did not contain any actual radium. It was only a brand name. Kinda like how many products today are labeled as "Titanium" even trough they do not actually contain any. Also, there was no Radium Toothpaste. There was Montazite toothpaste which had a tiny bit of radioactive thorium but it wasnt really a very dangerous amount

[@cyberyogicowindler2448]

Radium itself as pure material was way too expensive for quackery products (higher than gold, likely the most expensive metal of its time), but they contained uranium ore, which is radioactive enough to cause harm (especially by ingestion and inhaling) and naturally contains a tiny amount of radium. But often the name "Radium" (like the lightbulb brand) was simply an advertising buzzword (much like "laser" in 1980th) because it was precious and associated with the newest modern hightech of its era.

[@firenationfiles2063]

Trace?

[@anthonydunn729]

Shouldn't we also take this as a cautionary tale about how corporations work? I'd love to see their arguments for why it was unscientific nonsense to connect the workers illnesses to the glowing newfangled materials they were apparently lips deep in...

[@aidizikri95]

Life is a miracle, until people start to die

[@mario7832]

2068: “Kale the killer of millions and why Americans of the time believed it was a superfood”

[@diyolabor4059]

Radioactivity is good😈... never need a flashlight again!

[@aayush_789]

It's not Radium that glows, it's the radiation from Radium that powers Zinc Sulphide to glow.

[@greenalien8503]

I have a radium watch in my pocket right now

[@denizbluemusic]

when was it made

[@rishabhkr.1063]

Is there any product that is harmful and our future generations are going to make such videos on ?

[@SolyomSzava]

Glow-in-the-dark paint, beauty products, etc.... how are these not a part of the Fallout universe? Bethesda, take note of this video.

[@MisterCOM]

Sólyom Csaba they are

[@blanemangraford4747]

I thought the watch makers died of tritium T-25 ?

[@humblesoldier5474]

Real life Nuka Cola could have been a thing if Coca Cola had decided to make a Radium version during the Radium Hype.

[@AbudBakri]

Turned me into Captain America, then I joined Hydra

[@-TK-]

Where's the sausage gif when we need it

[@dolphinboi-playmonsterranc9668]

Dr.StickFigure Kale Hydra

[@jaza54]

"treating" cancer

[@mrfuzzyibrows]

so i cant become the hulk by consuming radium either huh...damn