Polonium-210 and lead-210 in food and tobacco products: a review of parameters and an estimate of potential exposure and dose

Technical Report · Fri Jul 01 04:00:00 EDT 1983

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/5663757· OSTI ID:5663757

Watson, A. P.

Food-chain transport of Pb-210 and Po-210 from soil to edible plant parts and from animal feed to meat and milk were evaluated from a review of literature. The degree of transfer was characterized by estimating concentration factors (unweighted arithmetic means) as well as the transfer coefficients B/sub v/, B/sub r/ (unweighted geometric means, f/sub m/ and f/sub f/ (unweighted arithmetic means). Global dietary intake of Pb-210 and Po-210 was also summarized, and 50-year dose estimates to target organs calculated. The greatest estimated ingestion doses were those to populations with large dietary complements of animal protein in the form of seafood (Japan) or caribou/reindeer muscle and organ meats (Arctic Eskimos and Lapps). The magnitude of this latter source illustrates the importance of simple food chains in generating significant exposures to populations dependent upon them. The origin and magnitude of inhalation exposure and dose from tobacco products was also assessed. For the majority of internal organs evaluated, the dose resulting from smoking commercially available tobacco products is comparable to or greater than the dose estimates for ingestion of naturally occurring dietary Pb-210 and Po-210.

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (USA)
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-26
• OSTI ID: 5663757
• Report Number(s): ORNL/TM-8831; ON: DE83016395
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

510302* -- Environment
Terrestrial-- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport-- Terrestrial Ecosystems & Food Chains-- (-1987)
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
560163 -- Radionuclide Effects-Internal Source-- Plants-- (-1987)
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
AEROSOLS
ALPHA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BIOLOGICAL ACCUMULATION
COLLOIDS
CONTAMINATION
DATA
DATA COMPILATION
DAYS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
DISPERSIONS
DOSES
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
EVEN-EVEN NUCLEI
FOOD
FOOD CHAINS
HEAVY NUCLEI
HUMAN POPULATIONS
INFORMATION
INGESTION
INHALATION
INTAKE
ISOTOPES
LEAD 210
LEAD ISOTOPES
MASS TRANSFER
NICOTIANA
NUCLEI
NUMERICAL DATA
PLANTS
POLLUTION SOURCES
POLONIUM 210
POLONIUM ISOTOPES
POPULATIONS
RADIATION DOSES
RADIOECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
RADIOISOTOPES
RADIONUCLIDE MIGRATION
RESIDUES
SMOKES
SOLS
TOBACCO PRODUCTS
TOBACCO SMOKES
TOXICITY
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES