radguide

25 Radiation for Radionuclide Users Estimated Loss of Life Expectancy from VariousActivities Health Risk Estimates of Days of Life Expectance Lost (Avg) Smoking 20 cigarettes/day 2,410 (6.6 years) Overweight (by 20%) 985 (2.7 years) All accidents combined 366 (1.0 years) Alcohol consumption (U.S. average) 365 (1.0 years) Auto accidents 207 Home accidents 74 Safest jobs (such as teaching) 30 Drowning 14 Natural background radiation, calculated 8 Medical x-rays, (U.S. average), calculated 6 All catastrophes (earthquake, etc.) 3.5 0.1 rem/Yr for 20 years, calculated 9.9 1 rem/Yr for 30 years, calculated 51 * From Bernard L. Cohen, “Catalog of Risks Extended And Updated,” Health Physics, Vol. 61, Sept. 1991.