Personal Radiation Dosage Chart

We live in a radioactive world. This might come as a shock, but radiation, something that cannot be seen or felt, is all around us, a part of our natural environment. Even though it is an integral part of the earth and the universe, it was only discovered in the late 19th century. The standard unit of measurement is the millirem (mrem), and the annual average dose per person from all sources is about 360 millirems, but it is not uncommon for any of us to receive far more in a given year (largely due to medical procedures we may have had or been exposed to). As an extreme, but safe example, international standards allow up to 5,000 millirems a year exposure, more than 10 times the average annual amount, for those who work with and around radioactive material. With the following chart, you should be able to get a general idea of how much radiation you are exposed to yearly. It is by no means complete and cannot account for every situation.

Section 1: Where You Live

Cosmic radiation at sea level (from outer space).... 26 (*)

For your elevation (in feet), add one of the following: (**)

up to 1000 ft.... 2

1000-2000 ft.... 5

2000-3000 ft.... 9

3000-4000 ft.... 15

4000-5000 ft.... 21

5000-6000 ft.... 29

6000-7000 ft.... 40

7000-8000 ft.... 53

8000-9000 ft.... 70

Terrestrial (from the ground):

If you live in states that border the Gulf of Atlantic Coasts (from Texas east, and then north).... 23

If you live in the Colorado Plateau Area (around Denver).... 90

If you live in Middle America (rest of the United States).... 46

House construction:

If you live in a stone, brick, or concrete building.... 7

Section 2: What You Eat And Drink

Internal radiation (in your body):

From Food and water—United States average.... 40 (*)

From air (radon)—United States average.... 200 (*)

Section 3: How You Live

Weapons test fallout (less than 1).... 1 (*) (***)

Jet plane travel:

For each 1000 miles you travel.... 1*number of times

If you have porcelain crowns or false teeth.... 0.07 (****)

If you use gas lantern mantles while camping.... 0.003

If you wear a luminous wristwatch (LCD).... 0.06 (*****)

If you use luggage inspection at airport (using typical X-ray machines).... 0.002 (*****)

If you watch TV (value is less than 0.1).... 1 (***) (*****)

If you use a video display terminal (less than 0.1).... 1 (***) (*****)

If you have a smoke detector.... 0.008 (*****)

If you wear a plutonium-powered cardiac pacemaker.... 100 (*****)

If you have had medical procedures that involved radiation: (******)

Diagnostic X-rays (e.g., upper and lower gastrointestinal, chest X-rays)—United States average.... 40 (*****)

Nuclear medical procedures (e.g., thyroid scans)—United States average.... 14 (*****)

If you live within 50 miles of a nuclear power plant (pressurized water reactor)—United States average.... 0.009 (*****)

If you live within 50 miles of a coal-fired electrical utility plant.... 0.03

Well, that's it for common sources of radiation. To learn your yearly dosage, add all the numbers that pertain to you, and that's your total dose in millirems.

Notes:

*	Numbers in bold (or other special format depending on Web browser) pertain to everyone.
**	Elevation of some United States cities in feet: Atlanta—1050; Chicago—595; Dallas—435; Denver—5280; Las Vegas—2000; Minneapolis—815; Pittsburgh—1200; St. Louis—455; Salt Lake City—4400; Spokane—1890.
***	The value is less than 1, but adding a value of 1 would be conservative.
****	Some of the radiation sources listen in this chart result in an exposure to only part of the body. For example, the radiation from false teeth generally only affects the mouth. However, the annual dose numbers given here represent the "effective dose" to the whole body.
*****	These items indicate man-made radiation.
******	These are yearly average doses. If you have had many such procedures, your dose would be much greater.

Information on this page were mostly taken from a pamphlet from the ANS (1990). Primary sources for this information are National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurement Reports: #92 Public Radiation Exposure from Nuclear Power Generation in the United States (1987); #93 Ionizing Radiation Exposure of the Population of the United States (1987); #94 Exposure of the Population in the United States and Canada from Natural Background Radiation (1987); #95 Radiation Exposure of the U.S. Population from Consumer Products and Miscellaneous Sources (1987); and #100 Exposure of the U.S. Population from Diagnostic Medical Radiation (1989).