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M$5
October 24, 2009 02:40 PM
Are x-rays harmful to children?
I've read some countries don't allow x-rays of children. Other countries, i briefed, require them for health prevention or early diagnosis. I've also seen where too many x-rays can be harmful and generally, there is not enough evidence that an ocassional ray does anything to us. What i fear though, is what we do to young children, rather than an old adult where such things are not as much of a big deal. Can you provide me with more or accurate information? I want to know more about preventative health issues through early detection, both good and bad, and this is one of them.
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| October 24, 2009 03:05 PM |
In children radiation can slow or even stop growth and development. However, these effects require very large doses, such as might be encountered from a nuclear accident or war, and will never be seen in ordinary life.The National Council on Radiation Protection estimates that every American, on average, receives approximately 3 mSv from unavoidable natural environmental sources, with man-made radiation adding about 0.6 mSv on average, mostly from diagnostic exposure in the healing arts. Diagnostic exposures range from the equivalent of a few hours or days (chest x ray or dental bitewings) up to a few years (body CT scan, some nuclear medicine procedures) of this natural environmental exposure.
Source Source: Adapted from Frederiksen NL. X-Rays: What is the Risk? Texas Dental Journal. 1995;112(2):68-72.
Estimated Exposure (mSV*)
Dental radiographs
Bitewings (4 films) 0.038
Full-mouth series (about 19 films) 0.150
Medical radiographs
Lower GI series 4.060
Upper GI series 2.440
Chest 0.080
Average radiation from outer space In Denver, CO (per year) 0.510
Average radiation in the U.S. from Natural sources (per year) 3.000
Medical x-rays have increased the ability to detect disease or injury early enough for a medical problem to be managed, treated, or cured. When applied and performed appropriately, these procedures can improve health and may even save a person’s life.
X-ray energy also has a small potential to harm living tissue. The most significant risks are:
* a small increase in the possibility that a person exposed to x-rays will develop cancer later in life; and
* cataracts and skin burns only at very high levels of radiation exposure and in only very few procedures.
The risk of developing cancer from radiation exposure is generally small, and it depends on at least three factors—the amount of radiation dose, the age at exposure, and the sex of the person exposed:
* The lifetime risk of cancer increases the larger the dose and the more x-ray exams a patient undergoes.
* The lifetime risk of cancer is larger for a patient who received x-rays at a younger age than for one who receives them at an older age.
* Women are at a somewhat higher lifetime risk than men for developing radiation-associated cancer after receiving the same exposures at the same ages.
Source(s):
http://hps.org/publicinformation/ate/q2809.html
http://www.ada.org/public/topics/xrays_faq.asp
http://www.fda.gov/Radiation-EmittingProducts/RadiationEmittingProductsandP...
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Voted as best: worldflavors, chriswingate, pellrider, kty2777, safiqulislam, twinpairs, tealmyster, kerryk, unwirklich
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Other Answers (12)
October 24, 2009 02:45 PM
Too many x-rays can harm anyone. they work by passing radiation through your body, which your bones will reflect back, letting you see the damage done.
this radiation is harmful, but only in high amounts.
x-rays are harming children, but its only noticeable in excess amounts.
in summary, dont stop your child having x-rays if they are needed, but dont let them get x-ray'd for every little pain, as it WILL damage they're body.
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October 24, 2009 02:47 PM
X-Rays are nothing but high energized radio waves. Any radio wave carrying more energy is harmful for cells. It kills the cells if exposed for more time. Hence for adult human too they are risky if exposed for long time. Not only the X Ray but any radio wave carrying more energy than 2W is risky for us if exposed for longer.
But the X-Rays that are used for medical purpose have a specific energy which don't kill cells instantly. However prolonged exposure may be fatal. Also they are exposed on us just for fraction of second. So they are not harmful.
But for new born babies or children having delicate cells they may be harmful. But if there is need to take X Ray for medical purpose, and if X Ray is taken by specialist they aren't harmful.
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October 24, 2009 02:57 PM
I can breath a deep sigh of relief after reading the article below. My daughter had an x-ray when she was 7 years old because of a deep wound that penetrates her left breast. The doctor wanted to be sure that her heart and lungs are OK. And I didn't have time to ask then if there are side effects or not. ----quote-----
The amount of radiation used to produce a conventional X-ray image is extremely small and has not been proven to cause harmful effects to children or adults.
----- end of quote----
source: http://www.mater.org.au/getdoc/aaa808cf-5566-417a-a531-87c46dba033f/Children-s-Medical-Imaging-and-X-ray.aspx
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October 24, 2009 02:58 PM
X-rays are a part of the electromagnetic spectrum, similar to visible light, radio waves, UV light, etc. However, they are higher energy than these other parts of the spectrum. When X-rays pass through an object (or a person's body) some fraction is absorbed. This fraction depends on the density of the object the X-rays are going through and the material it is made of. This is why X-ray images can differentiate between e.g. bone and muscle. The potential for damage is that when the X-rays interact for example with the genetic material in our cells' nuclei, they can damage the chromosomes there. Our bodies have evolved to handle some level of such damage, since there are natural sources of radiation in our environment that can cause similar damage.
When the dose of radiation (X-rays in this case) is not significantly higher than that caused by the natural environment, there is only a low likelihood of the damage causing health problems. Modern X-ray machines are designed to use the minimal dose necessary to form a usable image. The risks due to X-ray imaging is thus minimal unless you are subjected to a very large number of exposures. Radiologists are trained to assess when the risk from the added dose is low enough compared to the medical risks of not having the imaging done.
For children the risks are somewhat higher since, in simplistic terms, their bodies are still developing, so their DNA is being used more than in adult bodies. Still, the risks are relatively low if the number of X-ray images is not especially high, and the imaging is localized to where it is required (e.g. leg only, for a broken leg bone).
For adults, the area most susceptible to radiation damage is our reproductive organs (i.e. gonads and ovaries), which is why those areas are usually shielded with lead-lined aprons when X-ray images are being taken.
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Voted as best: mr_nicepants
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October 24, 2009 03:37 PM
Any amount of additional ionizing radiation by anyone will increase the person's chances of getting cancer. Background radiation is around 0.24 Rem per year. A standard medical x-ray is about 0.002 Rem.
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October 24, 2009 05:58 PM
x-ray is a type of high energy RADIATION and has some harmful effects, which include biological radiation effects. These radiation effects can be destructive to all living tissues and can cause DNA damage and mutations. The DNA damage if occurs can further enter certain states such as senescence that is an irreversible state of dormancy, cell suicide also known as apoptosis and unregulated cell division that forms a cancerous tumor. The Xrays have bad effects on pregnancy and childbirth. The birth defects can deform the body of the infant and could be fatal to his life.
X-rays can harm the tissue in the bones which is called bone marrow. X-ray can cause baldness that is the loss of hair on the head. X-rays also cause cancer development, thyroid cancer and invisible spectrum. X-rays have biological radiation effects, which are observed when ionizing radiation strikes living tissue and destroys the molecules of cellular matter. Birth defects are also known as congenital disorders are abnormalities of structure or function that exists at birth. Pregnancy and childbirth imply the gestation period of the human reproductive cycle. Bone marrow is a soft and pulpy tissue that fills the bone cavities, which occur in two forms i.e. red and yellow. Hair loss is a baldness or alopecia that is partial or complete loss of hair affecting the scalp. Thyroid cancer also known as endocrine gland occurs in all vertebrate animals.
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October 24, 2009 10:22 PM
i have several x-rays done and i have come to find out the reason it is probably something that they dont want kids enducing is probably because the x-ray could cause cancer... in fact your not supposed to have more then so many x-rays done per year because it could give u cancer or lead to it. mike !
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Voted as best: xds
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October 25, 2009 02:25 AM
The risk of x-rays to children over the age of 3 is about the same as the risk to adults, so if the child is older than 3, then the goal is to keep the doses within reasonably safe limits, and those safe limits are set according to your jurisdiction. (For example, in the US and Australia, the "safe limit" is pegged at being up to eight times higher than in places like Canada or New Zealand, because the US tested nuclear weapons on its own soil and Australia let Britain test British nukes on Australian soil, which means they both have more ambient local radiation than places that did not test nukes locally, so they have to peg the definition of their "safe limit" at higher levels otherwise everyone would legally be getting too much dose just by living there.)
Concern over childhood sensitivity to radiation comes from the fact that childrens' bodies are still growing, so it's suspected that cells still in the process of dividing are more susceptible to being turned into cancer cells than if they have stopped dividing, but that's a bit of a misapprehension based upon people not understanding what's really happening when a cell goes cancerous, which is that the genes which produce the proteins that stop other genes from expressing themselves get damaged, such that those other genes can start re-expressing themselves in order to start the cell dividing again, which means it can happen in a post-mitotic adult cell just as easily as in a dividing childhood cell where instead of the cell being turned cancerous, it's prevented the cell from being stopped from dividing... in either case the effect is the same.
When humans are less than three years old, there are developmental issues not related to cancer and to do with the effects of X-Rays on personality development within the limbic system while the mesocortical neurons are still imprinting, plus if the child is still in the womb, then too many X-Rays can cause embryos to mis-develop - which is why embryo and fetus observations are done with ultra-sound - but neither of those are strictly related to cancer per se.
If the person is older than 3, then use the same rules of dose limit as used with adults.
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October 25, 2009 05:56 PM
-quote- "Radiation effects on children are quite similar to those on adults with one major exception: in children radiation can slow or even stop growth and development. However, these effects require very large doses, such as might be encountered from a nuclear accident or war, and will never be seen in ordinary life. The National Council on Radiation Protection estimates that every American, on average, receives approximately 3 mSv from unavoidable natural environmental sources, with man-made radiation adding about 0.6 mSv on average, mostly from diagnostic exposure in the healing arts. Diagnostic exposures range from the equivalent of a few hours or days (chest x ray or dental bitewings) up to a few years (body CT scan, some nuclear medicine procedures) of this natural environmental exposure. All expert bodies and authorities recommend that clinically justified radiologic procedures be carried out without fear of radiation response. Of course, this implies due care on the part of the radiologist in minimizing radiation exposure to the patient. Harmful effects to patients from these diagnostic exposures have not been scientifically proven. If any effects occur, they are either too small or too rare to detect. In any event, health benefits to the patient far outweigh any potential harmful effects. Conclusion: You should accept any recommended diagnostic procedure from your physician, dentist, etc., provided that appropriate justification for that procedure can be presented. S. Julian Gibbs, DDS, PhD "
-end of quote-
Source(s):
http://www.hps.org/publicinformation/ate/q2809.html
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October 27, 2009 01:18 PM
X-rays radiations are ionizing radiations which can affect the structure of our body’s molecules and atoms within the cells. The x-ray photon can also strike the cell on its sensitive area thereby causing that cell’s death. Thus, overexposure to x-ray radiations can pose danger to your body. Moreover, overexposure to these ionized radiations results in the breaking of hydrogen-oxygen bond in the body thereby giving rise to the formation of hydrogen peroxide which is highly toxic to cells. This in turn can harm the overall health of a person. It has also been found that the chromosomes which are blueprints for the formation of new cells get changed by excessive radiation exposure and thus result in mutated cells. These cells in turn do not function properly or as desired. Thus, the major problems which can occur as a result of overexposure to x-ray radiation is erythema or the reddening of skin; radio dermatitis or dry, flaky skin; cataracts; and even cancer. This is because if cells get affected or die due to radiations, they lead to various ailments taking over the body. Moreover, if the DNA mutates, a cell becomes cancerous and it can spread affecting the entire body. While there is no denying the fact that x-rays are quite critical and important in many medical treatments, you should use it only when needed. You should not frequently expose your body to these radiations which become harmful when overused.
Source(s):
http://www.ayushveda.com/womens-magazine/are-x-rays-harmful-for-the-body/
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