Among Other Problems with Smoking, There Is a Danger from Radiation

question 100

Multiple Choice

Among other problems with smoking, there is a danger from radiation, according to the following report. "Tobacco plants are grown in soils with high phosphate fertilizers that are naturally contaminated with the alpha-particle emitting radionuclide polonium-210. In one year, the average smoker will irradiate the bronchial epithelium with 8 to 9 rem, the equivalent dose of radiation from 250 to 300 chest X-ray films per year" (Pediatrics, September 1993, p. 464) . How does this annual dose from tobacco compare to an average annual dose of 3.6 mSv that a nonsmoker receives from background radiation? (1 Sv = 100 rem)

• A)about 250 times more
• B)about 25 times more
• C)about 3 times more
• D)about 1/4 as much
• E)about 1/3 as much

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Definitions:

Stress Experience

The feelings and physical reactions to pressures or threats, varying in intensity depending on the individual's perception and coping mechanisms.

Perceived

Regarded in a certain way; the way in which something is understood, interpreted, or viewed by an individual or group.

Types of Stress Reactions

The varied physical or psychological responses individuals may have to pressure, tension, or high-demand situations.

Stress Reactions

The physical, emotional, and behavioral responses of individuals to stressors in their environment.