6 radiation sources you encounter every day

1. Radon

The main source of ionizing radiation that every person encounters is radon gas. It is colorless, odorless and tasteless and formedRadionuclide Basics: Radon | US EPA during the decay of radium and uranium. These elements are present in large quantities in the soil. The human factor has nothing to do with it - they appeared in the earth's crust in a natural way, when the planet was just being formed.

By statisticsEPA Assessment of Risks from Radon in Homes / USA Office of Radiation and Indoor Air United States Environmental Protection Agency, radon is the second most common cause of lung cancer (smoking is the first). It is constantly released from the soil and rocks under your feet.

If radon accumulatesConsumers Guide to Radon Reduction / EPA indoors in large quantities, it becomes dangerous. It usually enters houses from underground through construction joints in the foundation. Therefore, it is necessary to regularly ventilate rooms, including those where you rarely visit, such as attics and basements.

2. Cigarettes

Everyone knows that cigarettes are harmful to health, but not everyone knows that they are also radioactiveRadiation Studies: CDC - Cigarette Smoking and Radiation. They may containHuman Exposure to Radioactivity From Tobacco Smoke: Systematic Review / PubMed lead-210 and polonium-210 isotopes. These minerals get into growing tobacco from the soil and fertilizers.

They damage lung tissue and, as they accumulate there, lead to tumors. Also, active elements affect the kidneys, liver, bone marrow and spleen.

The radiation activity of tobacco may be one of the key factorsTENORM: Consumer Products | US EPA development of lung cancer. By calculationsDose to lungs from cigarettes / National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements National Council on Radiation Protection of the United States, a pack a day will provide the body with the same amount of radiation exposure as a non-smoker receives from the natural background of the Earth in a year.

Therefore, it is worth quitting this habit, as well asavoidRadioactivity in Tobacco | US EPA contact with cigarette lovers, because passive inhalation of smoke is also dangerous.

3. Construction Materials

Many of us have homes built from fairly radioactive materials. Sandstone, concrete, brick, natural stone, gypsum and granite are often containRadiation Studies - CDC: Radiation from Building Materials radium, uranium and thorium.

These isotopes are found in the walls and roofs of houses in small quantities, so by themselves they cannot harm the inhabitants of the premises. However, when they decay, the radon content in the atmosphere of the house increases and the overall level of exposure increases.

You can be safe from this. When building and decorating a house, give preference1. Reduce Radon Levels in Your Home | NCEH | CDC
2. Are granite countertops radioactive? Are the levels dangerous? | US EPA smooth and dense materials, such as granite, and not porous, like sandstone. Then radon will not be able to be released into the air. Seal cracks in floors and walls with sealants or plaster. Keep the air in the house fresh, ventilate the premises.

4. Natural gas

The same gas that your plate, is not only toxic by inhalation, but also contains some amountRadiation Sources in Natural Gas Well Activities - Occupational Health & Safety radon, uranium, thorium, radium and lead-210. True, these substances are quite enough in it. fewRadon exposures from the use of natural gas in buildings / PubMed, and by itself, cooking cannot lead to negative consequences.

However, the use of a gas stove increasesMost Common Exposures of Radiation Fact Sheet / S. C. Department of Health and Environmental Control annual radiation dose by 0.09 Sv. That's a little more than one chest x-ray. Switching to an electric model will save you from an extra source of radiation, and the danger of an explosion will be removed.

5. TVs and monitors

You may have laughed at your grandma's claims that TV "irradiates". Well, she wasn't so wrong after all. At least this applies to old CRT TVs. These pot-bellied kinescope monsters are real producedUS Department of Energy Dose Range Rem Chart x-ray radiation, providing the viewer with a dose of 0.5 milliroentgen per hour. This, however, not enough1. CFR - Code of Federal Regulations Title 21 2. Television Radiation/FDAto cause serious harm to health.

Modern flat-panel monitors and TVs do not produce any radiation, so you can exhale.

If you still have an old pot-bellied TV released in the 1970s-1980s, sit down9 Surprising Sources of Radiation in Household Items / This Old House at least a meter away from him, and everything will be in order. Do not get under the device when it is working: old kinescopes radiateWhen Televisions Were Radioactive—The Atlantic beta particles towards the ground. For the same reason, do not keep the TV on a high shelf - let it stand on the floor.

6. Stars

It would seem that the stars are quite distant objects, and they should not affect our lives in any way (we do not take into account the statements of astrologers: they consider the Moon to be a planet). However, the high-energy charged particles they emit, X-rays and gamma rays, can also irradiateRadiation Studies—CDC: Cosmic Radiation man, despite the fact that we are well protected by the Earth's magnetic field.

Of course, the closest star to us is the one that sighs the most - The sun. The total annual exposure from space is 0.33 millisieverts, about the same as three chest x-rays. There's nothing you can do about it, you'll have to put up with it. Well, or hide in an underground bunker, although not everyone has such an opportunity.