Radiation and Your Health

Radiation and Your Health

CDC Releases New Radiation Resources and Tools

Keeping You and Your Family Informed, Prepared, and Protected

CDC’s Radiation Studies Branch (RSB) has developed several new resources and tools to help individuals as well as public health and medical professionals understand how radiation impacts our lives every day and during a radiation emergency.

Radiation and Your Health Educational Resources

Whether we are using the microwave, enjoying a day in the sun, or getting a medical procedure, we are exposed to small amounts of radiation every day. RSB has enhanced its medical imaging resources web pages to provide information about the benefits and risks of some common medical imaging procedures, including:

• X-rays

• CT Scans

• Fluoroscopy

Radiation Emergencies Resources

A radiation emergency involves the release of significant amounts of radioactive materials into the environment, and whether it’s an accident or an intentional act, the result is health and safety challenges for the public. Knowing the right steps to take can save lives and protect health.

New products to help audiences understand more about radiation emergencies include:

Communicating in Radiation Emergencies: Myths of Radiation, a new training that introduces participants to some common myths of radiation and identifies communications strategies to combat these and other myths.

Radiation Thermometer, a new tool to help put common radiation doses in perspective. It is the radiation dose, or the amount of radiation, that is the critical issue in determining health consequences.

Radiation Hazard Scale, an emergency communication tool that provides a frame of reference for relative hazards of radiation, conveying meaning without using radiation measurements or units that are unfamiliar to people.                                                                                                                                                 

Radiation Emergency Training for Poison Center Staff, an informational and educational resource about radiation exposure and illness for poison control staff.

Radiation Emergencies Media Toolkit , an online Radiation Emergencies media toolkit that provides important content and materials in an easily accessible format to key audiences.

For more information, please see the following websites:

• Radiation Emergencies

• Radiation and Your Health