Is Radiation safe?

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We need to realize that no human activity is truly safe and free from risk. Even when sitting relaxed in a chair, we run the risk of tumbling from a chair. In every action, we take there is always a risk, however small the risk is. Sometimes, without realizing it, we ignore the risk. For example, when we want to cross the road when the traffic is not crowded, we just wait for a break between vehicles to cross. In this case, we unconsciously ignore the risk of being hit by a vehicle.

Every action we take may be relatively safer, or vice versa, relatively more dangerous than other alternative actions. For example, to detect a disease whether cancer or not, we can use X-rays. The use of X-rays itself carries risks, but if the cancer is left undetected, it can be fatal. In this case, the risk of using X-rays to detect cancer is far less than the risk of letting cancer go undetected. This is often referred to as benefit-risk considerations.

Therefore, we cannot say that radiation is safe, or vice versa, radiation is dangerous. All we can do is take the smallest risk to get the maximum benefit. There is nothing wrong with using radiation if the benefits that we will get far outweigh the risks.