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Lookup NU author(s): Dr Colin Muirhead
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
© 2017 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved. Exposure to ionizing radiation is ubiquitous, and it is well established that moderate and high doses cause ill-health and can be lethal. The health effects of low doses or low dose-rates of ionizing radiation are not so clear. This paper describes a project which sets out to summarize, as a restatement, the natural science evidence base concerning the human health effects of exposure to low-level ionizing radiation. A novel feature, compared to other reviews, is that a series of statements are listed and categorized according to the nature and strength of the evidence that underpins them. The purpose of this restatement is to provide a concise entre´e into this vibrant field, pointing the interested reader deeper into the literature when more detail is needed. It is not our purpose to reach conclusions on whether the legal limits on radiation exposures are too high, too low or just right. Our aim is to provide an introduction so that nonspecialist individuals in this area (be they policy-makers, disputers of policy, health professionals or students) have a straightforward place to start. The summary restatement of the evidence and an extensively annotated bibliography are provided as appendices in the electronic supplementary material.
Author(s): McLean AR, Adlen EK, Cardis E, Elliott A, Goodhead DT, Harms-Ringdahl M, Hendry JH, Hoskin P, Jeggo PA, Mackay DJC, Muirhead CR, Shepherd J, Shore RE, Thomas GA, Wakeford R, Godfray HCJ
Publication type: Review
Publication status: Published
Journal: Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
Year: 2017
Volume: 284
Issue: 1862
Online publication date: 13/09/2017
Acceptance date: 13/07/2017
ISSN (print): 0962-8452
ISSN (electronic): 1471-2954
Publisher: Royal Society Publishing
URL: https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2017.1070
DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2017.1070
PubMed id: 28904138
