Unfortunately, war is not clean. These particles create an airborne dust that can be inhaled or ingested. But lead, tungsten and other metals used in armor and armaments are also rather unhealthy to ingest, and are more common sources of adverse wartime health effects. But some people do not accept these conclusions. In February, the International Institute of Concern for Public Health claimed their clinical study of 16 veterans proved uranium poisoning.
Researchers still await the study's offering for review or publication.
Dr. Hari Sharma has been researching the health effects of DU in the Gulf for the Military Toxics Project. A former professor of chemistry, Dr. Sharma has personally asked NATO heads of state to stop using DU because he believes it has already resulted in 20,000-100,000 fatal cancers in Gulf War veterans and Iraqi citizens. But his research, despite a BBC report to the contrary, is neither complete nor published. There have been others, in tandem with the Iraqi government, blaming DU for a supposed epidemic of death and cancer among Iraqis following the Gulf War. However, scientists point out that reliable clinical and epidemiological data are hard to come by and U.S. government officials contend that the Iraqi government remains more interested in propaganda than the health of its own people.