Iranian Officials on the Health Advantages of Heavy Water Produced by Iran's Nuclear Project

Following are excerpts from interviews with Iranian nuclear experts on the various uses of heavy water, which aired on the Iranian news channel (IRINN) on August 29 and 30, 2006.

Reporter: Iranian experts have obtained the technology for producing heaving water, and this is not only a tremendous development in nuclear science, but will also open new horizons in the treatment of some incurable diseases. It is used for the diagnosis of various types of cancer. Heavy water is also used for labeling chemical reactions and syntheses.

Manouchehr Madadi, Director of the Arak Heavy-Water Facilities: [Heavy water] is an environment that is completely resistant to decomposition, and therefore, vaccines, organic substances, and some medications are usually stored in this environment, and do not decompose.

Reporter: The heavy-water reactor in Iran is a research reactor for conducting nuclear reactions. It has unique uses in diagnosing and treating cancer, producing radio-medicine, developing industry and agriculture, and conducting research activities.

Mohammad Sa'idi, Deputy for International Affairs, the Iranian Atomic Energy Organization: In various diseases, especially incurable diseases, such as cancer and AIDS, heavy water is now known to be a factor that can prevent the disease from spreading and can even eradicate it. Medical science in our country may become very active in this field, and we may be able to cure many diseases in the country, and in many cases, surgery may be avoided. The same goes for the difficult and lengthy treatment of AIDS.

Reporter: One of the advantages of operating the Arak heavy-water facilities is the production of light water. Light water may play an important role in preventing cancerous tumors and in controlling them.

Manouchehr Madadi: [Light water] can be included in people's diets, and can be consumed like regular water. Thus, even healthy people will become resistant to cancerous tumors, and the condition of sick people with cancerous tumors will improve, and the tumors will stop growing. In principle, the membrane of the cancerous cells is made of a certain type of protein. Deuterium-depleted water severely damages the membrane of the cancerous cells, and consumes the protein of the membrane.

Reporter: According to the research, when animals sick with cancer consumed light water, the tumor stopped growing in 70% of the cases, and in 59% of the cases, the cancerous cells were destroyed.

[...]

Azim Arbabi, former advisor to the Iranian Atomic Energy Organization: The water we use daily, which is in the sea and everywhere - each 5 cubic meters contains less than one liter of heavy water. Heavy water is not dangerous to anyone. If you give me a glass of heavy water - I will drink it. It is not dangerous.

[...]

Heavy water can be used for nuclear research. This is very useful. In the past, in order to moderate the speed of the neutrons coming out of the uranium, regular water was used. Before that, graphite was used. Now one can see that heavy water is more economical and works better. Heavy water is not dangerous at all and is not radio-active. As I said, anybody can drink heavy water up to one tenth of his weight, and nothing will happen to him. If you drink more than that, you will have problems - even if it's regular water.

Moderator: Regarding the water heavy water is produced - is it extracted from running water, which, as you said, contains a small amount of heavy water, or is it produced?

Azim Arbabi: That's a very interesting question. It is not produced, but extracted from regular water or sea water - just like you extract gold, for example, from river sand. In a similar way, you extract heavy water. In other words, it is separated by various methods. There is a variety of methods, and this is not the place to elaborate. By means of electrolysis... Or by means of the change that... Regular water boils at 100° centigrade, while heavy water boils at 101.4° centigrade, and this is another method of separation that can be used. Our colleagues use various methods to produce it.