Languages:
Effects that are caused by (usually short-term) exposure to radiation and that occur immediately after the exposure. (Source: GreenFacts)
Serious illness that occurs when the body receives a high dose of penetrating radiation (that is, able to reach internal organs) over a short period of time (usually minutes).
Americium is a silvery metal and a completely man-made element whose 6 known isotopes are all radioactive.
Americium-241, the most common isotope, is formed spontaneously by the decay of plutonium-241 and has a half-life of 430 years.
Bioaccumulation is used to describe the increase in concentration of a substance in an organism over time.
Bioaccumulative substances tend to be fat soluble and not to be broken down by the organism. (Source: GreenFacts )
Biodiversity is a contraction of biological diversity. Biodiversity reflects the number, variety and variability of living organisms.
It includes diversity within species (genetic diversity), between species (species diversity), and between ecosystems (ecosystem diversity). (Source: GreenFacts)
Caesium is one of the radioactive fission products created within a nuclear reactor during its operation.
Any one of a group of diseases that occur when cells in the body become abnormal and have the potential to spread and establish growth in nearby tissues and other parts of the body (malignancy). (Source: GreenFacts )
A clouding of the natural lens of the eye most frequently caused by ageing that can severely blur vision. (Source: GreenFacts)
The system that contains the heart and the blood vessels and moves blood
throughout the body. This system helps
tissues get enough oxygen and nutrients, and
it helps them get rid of waste products. The lymph system, which connects with
the blood system, is often considered part of the circulatory system.
(Source:
NCI
Dictionary of cancer
terms
The complex system of plant, animal, fungal, and microorganism communities and their associated non-living environment interacting as an ecological unit.
Ecosystems have no fixed boundaries; instead their parameters are set to the
scientific, management, or policy question being examined. Depending upon the
purpose of analysis, a single lake, a
watershed, or an entire region could be
considered an ecosystem.
(Source:
US EPA
Glossary of Climate Change Terms
Studies on human populations, which attempt to link human health effects (e.g. cancer) to a cause (e.g. exposure to a specific chemical). (Source: GreenFacts)
The exclusion Zone refers to the area extending up to 30 km in all directions around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant that was most contaminated by the accident.
After the accident, its population was evacuated and all agricultural and industrial activities were suspended. (Source: GreenFacts, based on the GreenFacts Digest on Chernobyl )
Contact of the cells of an organism with a substance, micro-organism or radiation. In the case of humans, this may involve contact with a substance or agent by swallowing, breathing, or through the skin or eyes. Exposure may be short-term [acute exposure], of intermediate duration, or long-term [chronic exposure].
Exposure can be divided into external and internal.
External exposure refers to the whole dose to which an organism is exposed.
Internal exposure refers only to that fraction of the initial chemical dose that is absorbed and distributed throughout the body via systemic circulation. (Source: GreenFacts)
The ability of people or animals to produce healthy offspring in abundance.
Unlike fecundity, which measures a potential ability, fertility measures the actual number of offspring of an individual, a couple, a group or a population. It is evaluated by the time to achieve pregnancy.
Please note that "fertility" corresponds to "fécondité" in French and "fecundidad" in Spanish whereas the French word "fertilité" and the Spanish word "fertilidad" mean "fecundity". (Source: GreenFacts)
The interconnected food chains (feeding relationships) in an ecosystem. Plants, herbivores, and carnivores all form parts of the food web. (Source: GreenFacts)
Water that is not salty, for instance water found in lakes, streams, and rivers, but not the ocean. Also used to refer to things living in or related to freshwater (e.g., "freshwater fish"). (Source: GreenFacts)
The functional and physical unit of heredity passed from parent to offspring.
Genes are pieces of DNA, and most genes contain the information for making a
specific protein.
(Source:
NHGRI
Talking Glossary of Genetic
Terms
The term which is used for the time required for the amount of a particular substance to be reduced to one half of its value when the rate of decay is exponential.
Radioactive half-life refers to the decay of radioactive substances. Iodine-131, for instance, has a half-life of 8 days whereas that of Plutonium-239 is more than 23 000 years.
Biological half-life refers to decay by biological processes. Substances with a long biological half-life will tend to accumulate in the body and are, therefore, particularly to be avoided. Substances with a short biological half-life may accumulate if some becomes tightly bound, even if most is cleared from the body rapidly. There is also the possibility of cumulative effects of chemicals which have a short residence time in the body. (Source: GreenFacts)
Iodine is a trace element that is necessary for the body to produce the thyroid hormone.
It is a bluish-black, lustrous nonmetallic solid element that mainly occurs in nature under its stable form, iodine-127. Stable iodine is naturally present for instance in seaweeds, sponges, and shell fish. It is also artificially added to salt.
Stable (non-radioactive) iodine tablets are an established countermeasure to accidents at nuclear installations that result in the release of radioactive iodine.
The tablets saturate the thyroid gland with stable iodine in order to prevent it from accumulating radioactive iodine, hence reducing the risk of thyroid cancer.
Atoms of the same element that have the same number of protons (same atomic number) but different numbers of neutrons (different atomic masses).
Isotopes have the same chemical properties but have different physical and nuclear properties.
Examples of isotopes are plutonium-238, plutonium-239, plutonium-240, and plutonium-241. Each acts chemically like plutonium but they have 144, 145, 146, and 147 neutrons, respectively. (Source: GreenFacts)
Leukaemia is a cancer that starts in blood-forming tissue such as the bone marrow, which makes blood cells (red blood cells that carry oxygen around the body, white blood cells that fight disease and infection, platelets that help to stop bleeding when it starts).
In people with leukaemia, the bone marrow produces large numbers of abnormal white blood cells and not enough normal red blood cells.
Leukaemia cases represent less than 4% of all cancer cases in adults but are the most common form of cancer in children.
There are different types of leukaemia (e.g. acute, chornic, myeloid and lymphoid leukaemia). (Source: GreenFacts )
The number of years that a person could expect to live on average, based on the mortality rates of the population in a given year.
Life expectancy can change over the lifecycle. For example, at birth a person
may be expected to live for 75 years, but if they survive to 75 they may be
expected to live for another 10 years.
(Source: New Zealand Ministry of Economic Development Population &
Sustainable Development,
Glossary
The deliberate termination of a human pregnancy through medical intervention. (Source: GreenFacts )
Death. Usually the cause (a specific disease, a condition, or an injury) is
stated.
(Source:
ATSDR
Glossary of Terms
Plutonium is a heavy, man-made, radioactive metallic element. The most important isotope is Pu-239, which has a half-life of 24 000 years. Pu-239 can be used in reactor fuel and is the primary isotope in nuclear weapons.
In the context of Chernobyl, an important radioisotope of Plutonium is Pu-241, which has a half-life of 14.4 years and decays into americium-241.
A group or number of people living within a specified area or sharing similar
characteristics (such as occupation or age).
(Source:
ATSDR
Glossary of
Terms
A psychological reaction that occurs after experiencing a highly stressing
event (as wartime combat, physical violence, or a natural disaster) outside the
range of normal human experience and that is usually characterized by
depression, anxiety, flashbacks, recurrent nightmares, and avoidance of
reminders of the event.
(Source:
Merriam-Webster
Online
Results of conception and ensuing pregnancy, such as sex ratio, birth weight, spontaneous abortion, congenital malformations, lower birth weight, preterm delivery or stillbirth. (Source: GreenFacts)
Energy moving in the form of particles or waves. Familiar radiations are heat,
light, radio waves, and microwaves. Ionizing radiation is a
very high-energy form of electromagnetic radiation.
(Source:
US Center for Disease Control and Prevention
Glossary of Radiological Terms
The decrease in the [radiation intensity] of any radioactive material with the
passage of time due to the spontaneous emission of radiation from an atomic
nucleus.
(Source: University of Harvard Environmental Health & Safety
Material that contains unstable (radioactive) atoms that give off [ionizing]
radiation as they decay.
(Source:
CDC
Glossary of Radiological Terms
Any waste that emits energy as rays, waves, streams or energetic particles.
Radioactive materials are often mixed with hazardous waste, from nuclear
reactors, research institutions, or hospitals.
(Source:
US EPA Terms of Environment
The spontaneous emission of ionizing radiation from the nucleus of an unstable
atom. Radioisotopes lose particles and energy through this process.
(Source: GreenFacts, based on Energy Information Administration
Glossary
Solid cancers are defined as abnormal cellular growths in "solid" organs such as the breast or prostate, as opposed to leukemia, a cancer affecting the blood, which is liquid. (Source: GreenFacts)
Strontium-90 is one of the radioactive fission materials created within a nuclear reactor during its operation. It remains radioactive for a long period of time and can contaminate property, requiring extensive cleanup. Since strontium can be absorbed into the food chain, it also poses a potential cancer-causing risk.
Strontium-90 has a half-life of over 28 years. (Source: GreenFacts)
Subjective health refers to how individuals evaluate their own health status. People with subjective poor health are those who perceive themselves as ill. (Source: GreenFacts )
The thyroid gland consists of two bodies like small walnuts; they are
connected by an isthmus beside the larynx (voice box). The thyroid gland
produces thyroid hormones T3 and T4 which
regulate the metabolism of all cells in the
body. Disorders of the thyroid gland are characterized by the inability to
produce or release sufficient thyroid hormones (hypothyroidism) or the
overactivity of the thyroid gland (hyperthyroidism).
(Source:
EMCOM
Endocrine Disruptors
Glossary
The likelihood of being unusually severely affected by a substance either as a
result of susceptibility to the effects of these substances or as a result of a
greater than average [exposure].
(Source:
WHO Europe
"The World Health Organization
193 countries and two associate members are WHO’s membership. They meet every year at the World Health Assembly in Geneva to set policy for the Organization, approve the Organization’s budget, and every five years, to appoint the Director-General. Their work is supported by the 34-member Executive Board, which is elected by the Health Assembly. Six regional committees focus on health matters of a regional nature."
WHO's scientific publications are widely recognized as a reference source.
The WHO has a number of regional offices which address the specific issues of those regions.
| WHO African Region |
|
| WHO European Region |
|
| WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region |
|
| WHO Region of the Americas |
|
| WHO South-East Asia Region |
|
| WHO Western Pacific Region |
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