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Sat 03 Mar 2004State may take back iodine tablets issued to all housesThe Department of Health has said it is prepared to consider recalling the iodine tablets issued to 2.1 million homes in 2002, after a conference was told they would be useless in the event of a nuclear incident at Sellafield, and could even pose a health risk to some people.Speaking at a special meeting of Louth Co Council yesterday, experts for British Nuclear Fuels Ltd (BNFL) said the iodine tablets were only effective when taken in response to a leak of the radioactive isotope iodine 131. Sellafield stopped handling this isotope some years ago, they said.