Today, radiation has many functions in industries and medicine. It is used to offer radiotherapy to cancer patients, generate electricity, sterilize equipment, carbon dating, and has many other beneficial functions. However, radiation has so much energy that when it interacts with live tissues from any organism, it can interact with the atoms in specific cells and induce mutations in the DNA. The cells have excellent mechanisms of repairing the damage, but often, if the radiation is excessive, the damage is inaccurate, leading to cell death and cancer, hence, radiation protection is vital.
Radiation sickness
Radiation syndrome or sickness is a major problem caused by excessive exposure to radiation, and depending on the dosage, the sickness can range anywhere between undetectable to life-threatening. One's work environment, nuclear accidents, and warfare, such as the Chernobyl disaster and the Hiroshima and Nagasaki attacks, and medical equipment like X-ray machinery are all sources of radiation.
The severity of the disease depends not only on the dosage, but how often the individual is exposed to the radiation, what type of exposure, and how the radiation is used. Sudden, low dosages of radiation, like the ones you get from an X-ray image, are unlikely to cause any significant damage. Still, the hospital staff will take additional precautions by leaving the room while the image is taken and covering the non-affected parts with a lead apron. However, longer, intense periods of exposure will cause irreparable damage to cells and DNA.
How much radiation is a concern?
Radiation is measured using various units, including rads, rems, Grays, and Sieverts. 1 rad is equivalent to 0.01 grey. Any exposure below 30 rads will cause symptoms in the blood, while anywhere above 30-200 rads will trigger visible symptoms of illness. From 200-1000 rads, the individual will be severely ill, with exposure above 1000 rads being lethal. Acute radiation syndrome is diagnosed when the affected individual receives over 70 rads from sources outside their bodies and affects most of the body, including internal organs. Internal exposure is when the radioactive material emitting radiation is ingested or breathed in.
Symptoms of radiation sickness
These symptoms can appear anywhere between right after the exposure or even years later. A low dose exposure (30 rads and below) will cause the loss of white blood cells and platelets, nausea and vomiting, and headache. They may also experience changes on the skin with redness and cataracts in the eyes. A 300-rad exposure will cause temporary hair loss plus damage to the cells lining the gut and nerve cells. Radiation sickness also manifests in various stages that proceed over several stages. The prodromal stage is first, with nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting, which can go for several days, followed by the latent stage where the symptoms vanish, and the patient appears to recover. The overt stage depends on the degree of exposure and shows as the malfunction of the digestive nervous, cardiovascular, and hematopoietic systems. From here, the patient will either go through a slow recovery or succumb to the poisoning. The damage done to cells by radiation poisoning is irreversible, and medics only treat the symptoms with medication that stimulates white blood cell production and absorbs radionuclides such as Cesium from the gut.
The risks of cancer and other long-term effects
Radiation has been linked to hundreds of cancers, such as most types of leukemia, skin, and thyroid cancers. Radiation also causes defects in fetuses and children and causes germline mutations that parents can pass on to their children.
Possible solutions
It is not possible to avoid total exposure to radiation, as most of it comes from the sun's cosmic rays, the Earth, and artificial sources like industries, medical facilities, and commercial settings. The food and water we consume also expose us to about 0.03 rads per year. The best way to avoid radiation poisoning is by reducing unnecessary exposure and investing in radiation protection. PET, X-ray imaging, and CT scans should only be done when absolutely necessary, and these expose you to up to 8 years of normal exposure in one setting. X-rays of the chest gives an equivalent of 10 day's exposure. You can also avoid the midday sun and wear sunscreen before leaving the house. Put on clothes that cover the skin, as the skin is especially vulnerable.
