UNIVERSITY KUALA LUMPUR

MALAYSIA FRANCE INSTITUTE

1.0 INTRODUCTION
Radiation is a form of energy. It comes from man-made sources such as x-ray
machines, from the sun and outer space, and from some radioactive materials
such as uranium in soil. Radiation travels as rays, waves or energetic particles
through air, water or solid materials. Radioactive materials are composed of
atoms that are unstable. As unstable atoms become stable, they release excess
energy called "radiation" through a process called radioactive decay or
radioactivity. The time required for a radioactive substance to lose 50 percent of
its activity by decay is called its half-life.
The most common types of radiation emissions are alpha, beta and gamma rays.
Alpha particles
Can be shielded by a sheet of paper or by human skin. But if materials
that emit alpha particles are inhaled, ingested or enter your body through
a cut in your skin, they can be very harmful.
Beta particles
Cannot be stopped by a sheet of paper. Some beta particles can be
stopped by human skin, but some need a thicker shield (like wood) to stop
them. Just like alpha particles, beta particles can also cause serious
damage to your health if they are inhaled or swallowed. For example,
some materials that emit beta particles might be absorbed into your
bones and cause damage if ingested.
Gamma rays
The most penetrating of these three types of radiation. Gamma rays will
penetrate paper, skin, wood, and other substances. Like alpha and beta
particles, they are also harmful if inhaled, ingested or absorbed. To protect
yourself from gamma rays, you need a shield at least as thick as a
concrete wall. This type of radiation causes severe damage to your
internal organs.

2.0 OBJECTIVE
To stimulate the interest in the biological effect of radiation.
To know more literate in the benefits and hazards of radiation.
To inform youngsters about the NRC's role in regulating radioactive
materials.

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MALAYSIA FRANCE INSTITUTE

3.0 RADIATION EFFECTS ON HUMAN

Certain body parts are more specifically affected by exposure to different types
of radiation sources. Several factors are involved in determining the potential
health effects of exposure to radiation. These include:
Amount of energy deposited in the body.
The ability of the radiation to harm human tissue.
Which organs are affected.
The most important factor is the amount of the dose, the amount of energy
actually deposited in your body. The more energy absorbed by cells, the greater
the biological damage. Health physicists refer to the amount of energy absorbed
by the body as the radiation dose. The absorbed dose, the amount of energy
absorbed per gram of body tissue, is usually measured in units called rads.
Another unit of radiation is the rem or roentgen equivalent in man. To convert
rads to rems, the number of rads is multiplied by a number that reflects the
potential for damage caused by a type of radiation. For beta, gamma and X-ray
radiation, this number is generally one. For some neutrons, protons, or alpha
particles, the number is twenty.

3.1 FACTOR OF RADIATION EFFECT

Radiation type
Area exposed
Total dose
Dose rate

3.2 PORTION OF BODY EXPOSURE

Whole Body Exposure.
Irradiation of all cells, organs, and tissues.
Symptoms depends on which organ is sensitive at the given dose
level.
Partial Body Exposure.
Damage limited to tissues and organs within exposed area.
Very high localized doses of radiation are used to treat certain
cancers without significant damage to the rest of the body.

3.3 RATE OF EXPOSURE

Localized Exposure
High dose
Short exposure time
Chronic Exposure
Low dose
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MALAYSIA FRANCE INSTITUTE

Long exposure time

Occupational radiation exposure
Exposure from natural background radiation
DOSE (REM)

EFFECT

Subclinical Range (0 to 100 rem)

No sickness occurs which requires

medical attention
Some changes occur in the blood
for doses near 100 rem

Therapeutic Range (100 to 200 rem)

Nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite,

and fatigue
Blood damage more severe
Redness of the skin

Lethal Range (>200 rem)

Nausea and vomiting become

more severe
Internal hemorrhaging may occur
Hair loss at 300 rem
200 - 600 rem: small percentage of
people will die within 30 days
600 - 1000 rem: higher chance of
death
>1000 rem: Certain death

3.4 LOCALIZED EXPOSURE

Telangiectasia
Dilation (expansion) of the blood vessels in the skin
Some areas receive excessive blood flow, diverting blood away from
other areas
The cells that LOSE blood flow suffer from oxygen deprivation
Erythema
Early Transient: Slight inflammation of skin due to inflamed blood
vessels
Main: more severe inflammation
Late: Severe inflammation of skin due to damaged blood
Acute Ulceration
Early loss of outer skin cells (peeling)
Dermal Atrophy
Thinning of the skin tissues
Epilation (hair loss)
Dry Desquamation
Keratinization (hardening) of the skin
Moist Desquamation
Skin loss due to inability of damaged skin cells to reproduce
Secondary Ulceration

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MALAYSIA FRANCE INSTITUTE

Skin damage due to dehydration and infection resulting from severe

moist desquamation
Dermal Necrosis
Cell/tissue death due to insufficient blood flow
Acute Epidermal Necrosis
Severe tissue loss
High-dose, low-energy beta irradiation

3.5 EFFECT OF WHOLE BODY EXPOSURE

Human body tolerates small doses of radiation exposure better over a long
period of time.
Human body
Repairs radiation damage
Eliminates radiation-induced byproducts

3.6 LONG TERM EFFECTS ON HUMANS

Long after the acute effects of radiation have subsided, radiation damage continues to produce a
wide range of physical problems. These effects- including leukemia, cancer, and many othersappear two, three, even ten years later.

Blood Disorders
According to Japanese data, there was an increase in anemia among
persons exposed to the bomb. In some cases, the decrease in white and
red blood cells lasted for up to ten years after the bombing.
Cataracts
There was an increase in cataract rate of the survivors at Hiroshima and
Nagasaki, who were partly shielded and suffered partial hair loss.
Malignant Tumors
All ionizing radiation is carcinogenic, but some tumor types are more
readily generated than others. A prevalent type is leukemia. The cancer
incidence among survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki is significantly
larger than that of the general population, and a significant correlation
between exposure level and degree of incidence has been reported for
thyroid cancer, breast cancer, lung cancer, and cancer of the salivary
gland. Often a decade or more passes before radiation-caused
malignancies appear.
Keloids
Beginning in early 1946, scar tissue covering apparently healed burns
began to swell and grow abnormally. Mounds of raised and twisted flesh,
called keloids, were found in 50 to 60 percent of those burned by direct
exposure to the heat rays within 1.2 miles of the hypocenter. Keloids are
believed to be related to the effects of radiation.

3.7 CHRONIC RADIATION EFFECT

Threshold Effect
No permanent biological damage occurs unless total dose exceeds
some value (threshold)
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Limit long term chronic exposures to less than threshold values to

protect against permanent damage

Tissue Damage and Repair

Body continuously attempts to repair damage as it occurs
If damage too severe
o Repair mechanisms become strained
o Aging effects are increased
Continued exposure shortens average life span
May result in cancer
o Genetic mutation of cells
o Leukemia: Inability to produce white blood cells normally

3.8 GENETIC EFFECTS OF RADIATION

Only seen in offspring of exposed workers
Changes to genetic information in reproductive cells due to damaged DNA
structure
May be spontaneous changes due to background radiation

3.9 SOMATIC EFFECTS OF RADIATION

Occur in the exposed person
Blood changes
Skin reddening (erythema)

3.10 INTERNAL RADIATION EXPOSURE

4 ways radionuclides can enter the body:
Inhalation
Swallowing
Absorption
Through Cuts
3.10.1 SWALLOWING AND INHALATION OF RADIONUCLIDES
When swallowed, radionuclides pass through normal digestion
processes.
When inhaled, radionuclides enter the lungs.
If soluble, transmitted through blood stream
In the blood stream, it travels throughout the body.
Some organs have an affinity to specific elements radioactive or
not.

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MALAYSIA FRANCE INSTITUTE

4.0 PROTECTION FROM RADIATION

External radioactivity
Time minimize time exposed
Distance Increase distance from source
Shielding Increase shielding
Internal radioactivity
Respirators
No eating / drinking in contaminated areas
No open wounds

5.0 CONCLUSION
From this assignment the overview of the health effects related to ionizing
radiation exposure in humans. These effects can be both non-carcinogenic and
carcinogenic in nature. Non-carcinogenic effects primarily result in immediate
effects, mainly to organs with rapidly dividing cells, which include the
hematopoietic system, gastrointestinal tract, and skin, or delayed effects such as
cataracts and embryo development problems. Carcinogenic effects also may
occur in any number of organ systems. This end point may not be expressed for
several years after the initial exposure. The dose-response relationships for these
effects are known from the massive amount of data from studies on both
humans. Epidemiology studies are not likely to provide significant refinement of
radiation risk estimates. The most fruitful approach to further understanding risk
from exposure to ionizing radiation is through molecular studies, including the
identification of unique biomarkers and pathogenic pathways at the cellular and
tissue levels.

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UNIVERSITY KUALA LUMPUR

MALAYSIA FRANCE INSTITUTE

6.0 APPLICATION

Fig 1: epilation

Fig 2: blindness

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MALAYSIA FRANCE INSTITUTE

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MALAYSIA FRANCE INSTITUTE

Fig 3: purpura

Fig 4: localized exposure

Fig 5:localized exposure
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UNIVERSITY KUALA LUMPUR

MALAYSIA FRANCE INSTITUTE

Fig 6: localized

exposure

REFERENCE
Stephen
Schwartz, The
and
Consequences
Nuclear
Weapons Since
Retrieved from

Costs
of U. S.
1940,

http://www.atomicarchive.com/Effects/effects16.shtml
David Fleming, Retrieved from

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UNIVERSITY KUALA LUMPUR

MALAYSIA FRANCE INSTITUTE

http://www.kingcounty.gov/healthservices/health/preparedness/radiation/fa
cts.aspx
Health Effects Of Ionizig Radiation, Retrieved from
http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxprofiles/tp149-c3.pdf

Contents
1.0 INTRODUCTION................................................................................................ 1
2.0 OBJECTIVE........................................................................................................ 1
3.0 RADIATION EFFECTS ON HUMAN......................................................................2
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UNIVERSITY KUALA LUMPUR

MALAYSIA FRANCE INSTITUTE

3.1 FACTOR OF RADIATION EFFECT.....................................................................2

3.2 PORTION OF BODY EXPOSURE......................................................................2
3.3 RATE OF EXPOSURE...................................................................................... 2
3.4 LOCALIZED EXPOSURE.................................................................................. 3
3.5 EFFECT OF WHOLE BODY EXPOSURE............................................................4
3.6 LONG TERM EFFECTS ON HUMANS...............................................................4
3.7 CHRONIC RADIATION EFFECT........................................................................4
3.8 GENETIC EFFECTS OF RADIATION.................................................................5
3.9 SOMATIC EFFECTS OF RADIATION.................................................................5
3.10 INTERNAL RADIATION EXPOSURE...............................................................5
3.10.1 SWALLOWING AND INHALATION OF RADIONUCLIDES...........................5
4.0 PROTECTION FROM RADIATION........................................................................6
5.0 CONCLUSION................................................................................................... 6
6.0 APPLICATION.................................................................................................... 7
REFERENCE.......................................................................................................... 10

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