The President and numerous experts tell us that the radioactivity coming from Japan will have no health risks associated with it.

How much will the radioactivity coming from Japan affect you?

I’d say less than…

…that luminous LCD wristwatch you’re wearing, which offers 0.006 mrem of exposure per year.

…cosmic radiation from space, which varies from 26 to 96 mrem/year.

…the radiation from the naturally occurring elements in the very ground you live on, which varies from 23 to 90 mrem/year.

…than the exposure from the concrete, stone, or brick building you live or work in (7 mrem/yr).

…than the naturally occurring radiation in your body, including the potassium-40 and carbon-14 that’s been in your tissues since birth or the naturally occurring radon you take in with every breath (240 mrem/yr).

…the radiation from traveling by airplane, which comes to 1 mrem/year for every 1,000 miles traveled.

…the exposure from those porcelain crowns and/or false teeth (0.07 mrem/year).

…the activity from your gas camping lantern (0.003 mrem/year).

…the x-ray machines at the airport (0.002 mrem/year).

…the radiation from your television or video screen (1 mrem/year).

…the activity from your smoke detector (0.008 mrem/year).

…the radiation from your plutonium-powered cardiac pacemaker (100 mrem/year).

…those diagnostic x-rays (40 mrem/year).

…that provided by nuclear medicine, such as thyroid scans (14 mrem/year).

…the exposure from living within 50 miles of a nuclear power plant (0.0009 mrem/year).

…the exposure from living within 50 miles of a coal-fired electric plant (0.03 mrem/year).

All told, naturally occurring sources provide you with roughly 300-350 mrem/year. When they tell you there’s no health risk, they’re telling the truth.

So, don’t panic.

Sources:

Personal Annual Radiation Dose Calculator

Sources of Radiation

Man-Made Radiation Sources

Natural Radiation Sources

Doses in Our Daily Lives