Fallout From ‘Nuclear Button’ Tweets: Jump In Sales Of Radiation Drug

Pharmacist Donna Barsky measured potassium iodide at the Texas Star Pharmacy in 2011 in Plano, Texas.

A Twitter battle over the size of each “nuclear button” possessed by President Trump and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un has triggered a surge in sales of a drug that protects against radiation poisoning.

Troy Jones, who runs the website www.nukepills.com, said demand for potassium iodide soared last week, after Trump tweeted that he had a “much bigger & more powerful” button than Kim – a statement that raised new fears about an escalating threat of nuclear war.

“On Jan. 2, I basically got in a month’s supply of potassium iodide and I sold out in 48 hours,” said Jones, 53, who is a top distributor of the drug in the United States. His Mooresville, N.C., company sells all three types of the over-the-counter product approved by the Food and Drug Administration. No prescription is required.