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Fact of the Day: The 'miracle' ingredient that slowly killed people
When Marie Curie discovered radium in 1898, it was a scientific triumph that won her a Nobel Prize—and unknowingly set off one of history’s most dangerous health fads.
Believed to have healing powers, radium was soon added to everything: toothpaste, face cream, hair gel, even food and drinks. Radioactive water was sold as a 'natural vitaliser', and glow-in-the-dark paint became wildly popular—used on watches, toys, and even beauty products well into the 20th century.
The glowing element was seen as magical. But it was too late when people realised it was silently killing people.
As for Marie Curie herself, she had no idea just how dangerous her discovery was. She was known to walk around her lab with radioactive materials in her pockets, fascinated by how they glowed like 'faint fairy lights'. Her notebooks remain so radioactive today that they’re stored in lead-lined boxes and will stay hazardous for more than 1,500 years.