Michelle Ong
Pronouns: she/her
Research Mentor(s): Lynn Carpenter
Co-Presenter:
Research Mentor School/College/Department: EEB/MCDB / Other
Presentation Date: April 20
Presentation Type: Poster
Session: Session 5 – 3:40pm – 4:30 pm
Room: League Ballroom
Authors:
Presenter: 53
Abstract
From disasters such as Chernobyl to the atomic bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima, the negative impact of radiation on human health has been well established. A complete understanding of the risks surrounding ionizing radiation goes hand in hand with proper regulations regarding radiation exposure. Unfortunately, these regulations that have been used to determine safety levels of radiation were developed via research primarily conducted on men. The use of Reference Man refers to “a hypothetical 20 to 30 year old Caucasian maleâ€; according to the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP). This standard model ignores the need for different protection regulations between the biological sexes despite “the possible existence of sex-specific differences in radiation-related risks†(Makhijani, 2009). A review of the literature was conducted to determine the inequalities found in current radiation research with the hopes of identifying where new research can focus. With recent research showing that the risk for cancer is 39% higher for women and young children are more vulnerable (Hansson, 2009), it has been proven that radiation effects on women and children can vary drastically compared to the effects on men. As numerous organizations argue and advocate for new safety levels to be determined based on parameters such as gender, age, race, and complications due to preexisting conditions, the goal is to contribute to this research by summarizing both the known and unknown thus far
Biomedical Sciences, Natural/Life Sciences
