How Radiation Sickness Works

# Stuff You Should Know Episode Summary

Josh and Chuck dive deep into the science of radiation sickness, exploring how ionizing radiation damages the human body at a molecular level and what happens when people receive dangerously high doses. They break down the differences between alpha, beta, and gamma radiation, explain the distinction between irradiation and contamination, and discuss how scientists measure radiation exposure using units called sieverts. The guys then examine real-world disasters like Chernobyl, Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and tragic lab accidents involving the infamous "demon core" that killed multiple physicists, while also surprisingly revealing that radiation sickness can actually be treated with certain medications that bind to radioactive particles and help flush them from the body.