Central Idea

A Member of Parliament in the UK demanded a statutory inquiry into medical research conducted on Indian-origin and South Asian women in Coventry.
Women of Indian origin were fed Chapatis containing a radioactive isotope of iron, Iron-59 to verify if it treats anaemia.

The 1969 Chapati Study

The study took place in 1969 and involved approximately 21 Indian-origin women from Coventry.
These women were given chapatis containing a radioactive isotope of iron, Iron-59, as a part of an effort to combat widespread anaemia.
The UK’s Medical Research Council (MRC) concluded that the study demonstrated the necessity for increased iron intake among Asian women due to the insolubility of iron in flour.

The release of the documentary “Deadly Experiments” in 1995 drew attention to the administration of radioactive substances in research during the 1950s and 1960s in the UK and the US.
Women were unaware of the experiment and its purpose; chapatis were delivered without clear information about their content.
An independent Committee of Inquiry was established in response to public criticism following the documentary’s release.
Principles violated in the experiment:

Researchers made judgments about benefits and costs without prioritizing participants’ well-being.
The study’s design aligned with the prevailing “paternalistic nature of science” and societal attitudes of the time.
The report suggested providing study materials in participants’ languages and addressing challenges with informed consent.
Determining informed consent many years later remains a significant challenge.
The MRC no longer possessed the participant list, and public appeals for participants yielded no results.

Radioactive isotopes are unstable forms of elements that emit radiation during their transformation into stable forms.
Unstable nuclei contain excess energy, which is released as radiation in the form of waves or particles.
The long-term health effects of radiation exposure vary depending on the type and amount of radiation.

An MP emphasized the MRC’s unfulfilled recommendation to identify and engage the women participants.
Identifying participants would have enabled them to share experiences, receive support, and learn from the experiment.
The MRC reaffirmed its commitment to engagement, transparency, and upholding the highest research standards.

The study underscores ethical concerns within historical medical research.
Reflecting on past practices informs present and future medical research endeavours.