Effects Of Radiation On The Human Body

At the beginning of the awareness of radioactivity, people did not think it was dangerous, which led to some unnecessary injuries. But I don't know when people started talking about "nuclear", and things related to "nuclear" were given a layer of mystery. In fact, it is not necessary, whether it is nuclear energy or nuclear technology, they are not far away from us. Since the birth of life, radiation from cosmic rays and natural radionuclides has been accompanying life, not only does not harm life but has even become an important condition for life to evolve. With the deepening of mankind's understanding of nuclear science, modern nuclear technology is no longer limited to laboratory research but has begun to move into all aspects of social life and serve mankind. From radioactive diagnostic equipment in hospitals to security inspection equipment in airports, from smoke alarms in classrooms to lightning rods on roofs, examples of nuclear technology applications can be found everywhere. They ensure our safety and provide convenience for our lives.

Of course, the dangers of nuclear reactions cannot be ignored, and scientific protection awareness must be cultivated. As long as we follow the operating procedures and carry out safe operations, nuclear hazards can be completely avoided.

1. What is radiation?

Radiation refers to the outward transmission of energy in the form of electromagnetic waves or particles (such as alpha particles, beta particles, etc.). All objects in nature, as long as the temperature is above absolute zero (equivalent to -273.15°C), will produce radiation, radiating energy in a straight line in all directions. Sunlight, which is necessary for the growth of all things, is also a kind of radiation in essence, which is the way the sun transfers heat to us.

According to relevant studies, total glycosides of Cistanche can significantly promote the recovery of SOD activity in erythrocytes and nucleic acid content in spleen cells of mice after 60Co irradiation damage, reduce the content of MDA in liver cells, and significantly reduce the Peripheral blood leukocytes, bone marrow nucleated cells, reticulocytes, and splenic colony count (CFUS), decreased selenium glutathione peroxidase (Se-GSH-Px) activity in bone marrow cells and spleen cells, increased MDA content, It shows that the total glycosides of Cistanche deserticola have an anti-radiation effect. Therefore, you can usually soak water with Cistanche to drink, or eat the extract of Cistanche, so as to achieve the effect of anti-radiation in daily life.

Click On Cistanche Supplement

FOR MORE INFORMATION:david.deng@wecistanche.com 

Radiation can generally be classified into ionizing radiation and non-ionizing radiation according to its energy level and the ability to ionize matter.

2. Non-ionizing radiation

Non-ionizing radiation is low-energy electromagnetic waves. Its energy is weaker than ionizing radiation, and it cannot ionize electrons from atoms or molecules. Only electromagnetic waves with shorter wavelengths than ultraviolet waves have higher energy. Radio waves, microwaves, infrared rays, visible light, and ultraviolet rays in our daily life are all non-ionizing radiation.

3. Ionizing radiation

Ionizing radiation refers to rays with short wavelengths and high frequency and energy. They can ionize at least one electron from an atom or molecule, thereby changing its structure and physical and chemical properties. What we often call "nuclear radiation" belongs to ionizing radiation. Ionizing radiation mainly includes alpha, beta, gamma radiation, and neutron radiation.

4. The influence of electromagnetic radiation on the human body

Electromagnetic radiation is electromagnetic waves that transfer energy in the form of mutually perpendicular electric and magnetic fields that change over time. The earth itself where human beings live is a large magnetic field. Thermal radiation and lightning on its surface can produce electromagnetic radiation. The sun and other planets also continuously generate electromagnetic radiation from outer space. The natural magnetic field, sunlight, Household appliances, and the like emit radiation of varying intensities.

The influence of electromagnetic radiation on the human body should be analyzed in detail according to its intensity and frequency. Electromagnetic radiation is classified according to frequency, from low frequency to high frequency, including radio waves, microwaves, infrared rays, visible light, ultraviolet rays, X-rays, and gamma rays. X-rays and γ-rays have strong ionizing abilities and belong to the category of ionizing radiation, while other electromagnetic radiations have relatively weak ionizing abilities.

For lower-frequency electromagnetic radiation, ranging from radio waves to ultraviolet rays, the main impact on the human body is the thermal effect. For example, we will feel burned by the sun under strong sunlight. This is the thermal effect of sunlight on the human body. Common mobile phones and computers in daily life mainly use radio waves and microwaves, which belong to low-frequency electromagnetic radiation. There is no sufficient evidence to prove that they will cause harm to human health.

Electromagnetic radiation with higher frequencies, such as X-rays and γ-rays, have ionizing properties, and their impact on the human body is no longer limited to thermal effects, but directly or indirectly damages human cells, and excessive exposure is harmful to human health. Therefore, we should try our best to avoid entering the high-frequency electromagnetic radiation area.

The impact of ionizing radiation on human health mainly affects the normal function of cells through direct and indirect interactions with cell atoms or molecules. The basic principle is: the direct effect of ionizing radiation is that the ray directly acts on biologically active macromolecules (such as nucleic acid, protein, etc.), causing them to ionize, excite or break chemical bonds, resulting in changes in molecular structure and properties; the indirect effect is Rays first cause the ionization and excitation of water molecules in the body to generate a series of active products, which have strong oxidation ability and can cause damage to biologically active macromolecules.

5. The effects of ionizing radiation on the human body

The biological effects of ionizing radiation can be divided into stochastic effects and deterministic effects.

(1) The possibility of random effects is related to the dose. The greater the radiation dose, the greater the possibility of occurrence, but the severity has nothing to do with the dose;

(2) The deterministic effect will not occur until a certain exposure dose is exceeded, and the greater the dose, the more serious the effect.

The form of ionizing radiation exposure to the human body can be divided into partial irradiation and whole-body irradiation. Depending on the area of the irradiated body and the different organs or tissues, the resulting biological effects will also be different.

(1) A large dose of radiation irradiating a local small area will cause a large number of cell death, but as long as it is not an important organ, the impact of local cell death on the body is relatively limited, coupled with the strong self-repair ability of the human body, damaged cells will die after death. New healthy cells enter the area, restoring the original function.

(2) If the whole body is irradiated with the same amount of high-dose radiation, there is a high probability that the cells of the whole body will die due to radiation exposure. There will be dysfunction in tissues, and the human body will be in danger of death.

6. Radiation everywhere

The existence of cosmic rays and natural radionuclides on the earth can be traced back to the moment when the earth was born about 4.6 billion years ago. The existence of radiation exposure was far earlier than the arrival of human beings on this planet. Evolution from apes to humans, and under radiation exposure, they have reproduced and survived to this day.

In the natural environment we live in, ionizing radiation is ubiquitous. Radioactivity is present in the air, in our food and water sources, and in the ground beneath our feet.

It can be said that today, human beings have adapted to this world with natural radiation and have lived in harmony with it. We don't need to worry about the natural background level of radiation exposure in nature. In fact, humans cannot completely avoid this ionizing radiation.

The radioactivity received in daily life will not cause harm to the human body, so we don't have to worry too much. However, some specific radioactive sources have high radiation intensity and are indeed harmful to human health. We should try to avoid them as much as possible. For the protection of such nuclear radiation, professional protective equipment must be provided.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:david.deng@wecistanche.com   contact:0013632399501