A 'new normal' for the children in Fukushima

In January, I received a call from a worried mother in Fukushima: she was bringing her children to a private clinic to have their thyroids examined for cysts and nodules.  She asked me if I would go with her.

Although her children had been found to have no thyroid cysts during the official examination overseen by the government,  she was wary of the results and wanted to get a second opinion.

Many parents in Fukushima have trouble believing the official test results due to inaccurate results and other discrepancies that they see as being part of an official coverup, as I documented in November 2012 (HERE).

I accompanied the mother and her children to the clinic and witnessed what is now the 'new normal' for the children in Fukushima who were never evacuated after the nuclear meltdown on March 11, 2011.

福島の子供達の多くは、メルトダウン後も避難させてもらえなかった。

Recently, the number of children in Fukushima found to have thyroid cysts and nodules is increasing. 

How thyroid cysts and nodules will impact the children in the future, no one knows.

嚢胞としこりを持つ福島の子供達の数が増加してきている。嚢胞としこりが福島の子供達の未来にどう影響を与えるのか、誰にもわからない。

 
For the children of Fukushima thyroid tests are now just a part of life.

福島の子供達にとって甲状腺テストが生活の一部となっている。