There are several types of radiation. These include ionizing radiation, which can cause cancer, radiation poisoning, and burns.
Today, small amounts of radiation are found only in some household items and foods. One banana is known to contain 0.0001 millisievert (mSv) of the isotope potassium-40, which is a very small dose. Brazil nuts are thought to be radioactive, but it is still safe to eat two or three a day.
Smoking is also harmful to health because the fertilizers used to grow tobacco contain radioactive radium, lead and polonium. As a result, one cigarette contains the same dose of radiation as seven bananas.
Smoke detectors contain small amounts of the americium-241 isotope. However, americium emits radiation due to alpha decay, and this can be completely blocked even with a piece of paper.
As for tableware, some ceramic plates and cups made between the 1930s and 1970s may contain uranium oxide. If you eat and drink these, it will be equivalent to eating approximately one banana per hour.
The radioactivity of your building depends on exactly where you live. For example, in the southwest of England, the biggest source of radiation is thought to be the granite under houses. Granite contains some uranium, which undergoes radioactive decay to form radium and then radon. Radon slowly leaks into the air and, in high concentrations, can increase the likelihood of lung cancer.
Also, a transatlantic flight by plane will give you about 0.04 mSv of radiation (400 bananas), and a six-month stay on the International Space Station will give you another 80 mSv (800 thousand bananas).
Source: Ferra
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