Radium, once thought of as an elixir of health, masks unknown and deadly dangers. In “The Poisoner's Handbook: Killer Chemistry”, it discusses the case of the Radium Girls, specifically Amelia Magia. Amelia was one of the workers employed by the United States Radium Corporation in the 1920s. She and her co-workers were tasked with painting watch dials with radium-based paint. Unfortunately, they did not know about the dangers of radium and were encouraged to lick their paint brushes to keep them pointed. As a result, they ingested large amounts of radium. Over time, Amelia and her colleagues developed severe health issues including radiation poisoning, bone fractures, and radium necrosis. Shortly after, Amelia passed away along with several …show more content…
After this, radium began to quickly gain attention for its unique properties, including its ability to emit a steady glow without an external power source. Once this discovery was made, radium would be found in watches, aircraft switches, and clocks, so that they could be seen at night or in dark areas. Additionally, it would be in antique items such as clothing and dishes for aesthetic purposes or for some sort of medical application. However, as the harmful effects of radiation became more understood, regulations were put in place to limit its use and it was replaced with safer alternatives. In the present-day, radium is considered a by-product of other mining and processing operations, such as the extraction of uranium or rare earth metals. It is also naturally occurring and can be found in trace amounts of soil, rocks, and water. Even today, the discovery of radium remains as fascinating as the day it was found. In the early 20th century, there was another famous case involving radium and its detrimental effects on human health. One individual at the center of this case was Eben Byers, a wealthy American socialite and