Understanding the Types of Radiation and its Effects on the Body

Are you aware of which radiation has been deemed dangerous? It would be pertinent to mention here that radiation dosage could be measured in several ways. Most of the units used would be Rads, Rems, Sieverts, and Grays. These have been used in similar ways. However, 1 Rad has been deemed equivalent to 0.01 Gray.

Let us delve on the effects on the body with different dose of radiation.

  • Below 30 Rads: You would suffer from mild symptoms occurring in the blood.
  • From 30 to 200 Rads: You would become ill.
  • From 200 to 1,000 Rads: You would become seriously ill.
  • Over 1,000 Rads: Such high radiation could cause fatal results.

The energy workers compensation program would be able to diagnose radiation sickness and even diagnose acute radiation syndrome when:

  • You receive more than 70 Rads from an outside source.
  • The dose affecting the entire body or some part of it and has gained access to the internal organs.
  • You have received a dose in short duration, mostly within minutes.
  • A person experiencing an atomic explosion would receive two doses of radiation, firstly during the explosion, and the other from the fallout. It would occur when the radioactive particles would float down after the explosion.

Understanding the symptoms of radiation sickness

Radiation sickness could be acute, occurring soon after exposure. The symptoms would appear with the passage of time or after a significant length of time. The signs and symptoms of acute radiation poisoning would be as follows:

  • Loss of appetite
  • Nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting
  • Headache
  • Feeling unwell or malaise
  • Quickened heartbeat

The symptoms would be based on the dose. It would also be dependent on whether it has been single of repeated.

A low dose of 30 Rads would lead to:

  • Headaches
  • Vomiting and nausea
  • Loss of white blood cells

A dose of 300 Rads would lead to:

  • Damage to digestive tract cells
  • Damage to nerve cells
  • Temporary hair loss

What are the different stages of radiation sickness?

The symptoms of severe radiation poisoning would usually go through four stages.

  • Prodomal stage

It would be inclusive of diarrhea, vomiting, and nausea. The symptoms would last from a few minutes to several days.

  • Latent stage

The symptoms may disappear. As a result, you would feel as if you were recovering.

  • Overt stage

Based on the kind of exposure, it would entail problems with the gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, central nervous system, and hematopoietic.

  • Recovery or death

There may be slow recovery or the poisoning could be deadly.