UK MP calls for inquiry into Punjabi women given radioactive chapatis in study
London: A UK Opposition Labour Party member of Parliament and shadow minister for women and equalities has called for a statutory inquiry into medical research dating back to the 1960s that led to Indian-origin women being given chapatis containing radioactive isotopes to combat iron deficiency.
Taiwo Owatemi, who is the MP for Coventry in the West Midlands region of England, said in a post on X – formerly Twitter – recently that she is “deeply concerned” for the women and families impacted by the study.
“My foremost concern is for the women and the families of those who were experimented on in this study,” said Owatemi.
An MRC spokesperson said an independent inquiry, commissioned following a documentary on Channel 4 in 1995, had examined questions raised.
According to a BBC report, it emerged at the time that about 21 women were involved in the experiment after seeking medical help from a city GP for minor ailments.
Chapatis containing Iron-59, an iron isotope with a gamma-beta emitter, were delivered to participants’ homes. They would later be invited to a research facility in Oxfordshire to have their radiation levels assessed.
It was reported that the MRC said the study proved that “Asian women should take extra iron because the iron in the flour was insoluble”. The MRC said in a statement it remained committed to the highest standards, including “commitment to engagement, openness and transparency”.
