Radiation
What Every Woman Needs to Know
By Anne Michelsen
If you were pregnant, would you consider
stripping lead-based paint without a respirator, breathing chloroform, or working in a
garage full of engine exhaust?
Of course not. It’s widely known that these
substances can cause cancer and other health
problems, and could potentially harm your
growing baby.
But every day, millions of pregnant women
– and their unborn babies – are exposed to
a substance recognized by the World Health
Organization as carrying the same risk level
for cancer as chloroform, gasoline fumes, and
lead. It’s a substance you can’t see, hear or feel,
but it’s present almost anywhere you go. In
fact, you’re almost certainly being exposed to
it right now as you read these words.
This “substance” is not actually matter. It’s a
type of energy known as non-ionizing radiation. And recent research indicates that it’s a
cause for concern – especially for pregnant
women and young children.
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Radiation: a growing concern
Radiation isn’t always dangerous. Most of the
radiation we receive is naturally present in the
environment. Some is actually beneficial: heat
and light are both forms of radiation necessary to support life. However, our average
annual radiation exposure is increasing dramatically – 172% between 1996 and 2006, according to the National Council on Radiation
Protection and Measurement, ncrponline.
org. Much of this excess radiation exposure
occurs at home, in the workplace, and even in
the doctor’s office. And some forms of it can
significantly impact our health, and the health
of our unborn children.
Fetuses and young children are especially susceptible to the effects of radiation. Their immune systems are immature, and the rapidly
growing and dividing cells in their developing
tissues and organs are more readily disrupted
than those of an adult. Radiation exposure has
been linked to a wide variety of ill effects in
children, including delayed growth, small