J Biomed Phys Eng 2019; 9(4)
www.jbpe.ir
Martian Residents: Mass Media and
Ramsar High Background Radiation
Areas
Abbasi S.1
, Mortazavi S. A. R.2
, Mortazavi S. M. J.1,3*
1
Medical Physics Department,
School of Medicine,
Shiraz University
of Medical Sciences,
Shiraz, Iran
2
Student Research
Committee, School of
Medicine, Shiraz University
of Medical Sciences,
Shiraz, Iran
3
Diagnostic Imaging
Department, Fox Chase
Cancer Center, 333 Cottman
Avenue, Philadelphia,
PA 19111, USA
*Corresponding author:
S. M. J. Mortazavi, Ph.D
Medical Physics Department,
School of Medicine,
Shiraz University
of Medical Sciences,
Shiraz, Iran
E-mail: mortazavismj@
gmail.com
Received: 3 February 2019
Accepted: 25 March 2019
Introduction
N
ot only life evolved in a radiation field that was much more
intense than today but high level natural radiation was an
essential part of life. The ambient dose rates dropped by a
factor of 10 since life first evolved. In early days of life high levels
of background radiation is accounted for up to 33% of mutations
to the first life forms [1] while background radiation presently
accounts only for 1 – 6% of mutations. Today, areas with high
background radiation (HBRAs) are found in many places such as
Brief Communication
ABSTRACT
Considering current controversies regarding the health effects of low doses
of ionizing radiation, study of the high background radiation areas such
as Ramsar, Iran can help scientists better evaluate the validity of linear
no-threshold (LNT) hypothesis. Ramsar is a coastal city in northern Iran
with some areas known to have the highest levels of natural background
radiation in the world. The mean annual dose of the residents of high background
radiation areas (HBRAs) of Ramsar is 10 times higher than the
public dose limit recommended by the ICRP (1 mSv/year) and a proportion
of the residents receive annual doses as large as 260 mSv (13 times higher
than the occupational dose limit recommended by the ICRP). A report published
in Popular Science proclaims that background radiation in Ramsar
approaches that of the Martian surface. However, estimates show that the
maximum annual radiation dose in HBRAs of Ramsar can be much higher
than that of the Martian surface (260 mGy/y vs 76 mGy/y). Furthermore, a
Guardian report introduces Talesh Mahalleh, a district in Ramsar, as an inhabited
area with the highest levels of natural radioactivity in the world and
C Net claims that the best Mars colonists may come from places like Iran
and Brazil. In spite of current concerns, nearly all residents still live in their
paternal dwellings and there are not consistent reports on any detrimental
effects. It is worth noting that, due to small sample size, to draw a firm conclusion
about the health effects of high level natural radiation in Ramsar,
in particular about the cancer risk, current information is not sufficient and
further studies are needed.
Citation: Abbasi S, Mortazavi S. A. R, Mortazavi S. M. J. Martian Residents: Mass Media and Ramsar High Background Radiation Areas. J
Biomed Phys Eng. 2019;9(4):483-486. https://doi.org/10.31661/jbpe.v0i0.1138.
Keywords
Background Radiation ● Iran ● Linear No-Threshold Theory (LNT) ● Radiation
Protection ● Natural Radiation
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J Biomed Phys Eng 2019; 9(4)
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Ramsar, Iran; Yangjiang, China; Kerala,
India; and Guarapari, Brazil. According to
UNSCEAR 2000 report [2], Ramsar, a seaside
vacation resort on the southern coast of
the Caspian Sea, has inhabited areas with
the highest known natural radiation levels
in the world. Radiation levels on Earth vary
by at least two orders of magnitude (e.g.
Ramsar with a max dose of 260 mGy/y compared
to Denmark with a max 0.61 mGy/y)
[3]. In HBRAs of Ramsar, gamma radiation
levels are up to about 20 mSv/hr at waist
level and a population of about 2000 lives
in this area. Annual exposure levels range
from about 20 to 260 mGy for people in hot
areas. Talesh Mahalleh, a well-known district
in Ramsar has been introduced as the
most naturally radioactive inhabited area in
the world [3].
Martian Surface and Ramsar
Charlie Wood in a report published by
Popular Science in 2018 [4] compares
the radiation dose in high background radiation
areas of Ramsar with those of the
Martian surface “Fortunately, and inexplicably,
cancer there occurs at similar rates
to nearby areas, despite background radiation
approaching that of the Martian surface”.
Although this report has proclaimed
that background radiation in Ramsar approaches
that of the Martian surface, studies
shows that the maximum annual radiation
dose in HBRAs of Ramsar can be much
higher than the Martian surface.
The Most Radioactive City
In 2015, the Guardian published a report
entitled What’s the most radioactive city?
[5] This report states “The city of Ramsar,
Iran has such high natural background radiation
levels that scientists have recommended
that the 32,000 residents relocate”.
This report also introduces Talesh Mahalleh,
a district in Ramsar, as an inhabited
area with the higheslevels of natural radioactivity
in the world “Its neighbourhood of
Talesh Mahalleh, the most naturally radioactive
inhabited area in the world, is under
long-term study”. However, this report has
some shortcomings. For example, while the
population of HBRAs of Ramsar is about
1000-2000(1), it is reported 32,000 in this
report. Moreover, as discussed in the following
sections, relocation is not supported
by current findings.
Mars Colonists Could Come from
Ramsar
“Why the best Mars colonists could come
from places like Iran and Brazil?” This
is the title of a report published by C Net
[6]. This reports states “For years now,
scientists have been studying residents of
Ramsar, a town in northern Iran that is believed
to have the highest levels of naturally
occurring background radiation for an
inhabited area”.
Should Local People Be Afraid of
Radiation?
The ICRP limits for general public and
radiation workers are 1 and 20 mSv per
year, respectively. The annual effective
dose for the residents of HBRAs of Ramsar
is up to 13 times higher than the limit for
occupational exposures. Given this consideration,
a key question is whether local
people should be afraid of radiation? It is
worth noting that scientist believe that exposure
to background radiation does not
increase the risk of either acute effects or
cancer “Background radiation has never
been shown to unequivocally cause acute
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or latent disease, such as cancer (Hall and
Ciaccia 2005)” [7]. Moreover, there are reports
indicating reduced rates of cancer in
the residents of areas with elevated levels
of natural radiation “Reduced cancer occurrence
was reported since decades ago
for HBRAs (Frigerio et al. 1973, Cohen
1995, Aliyu and Ramli 2015, Mortazavi et
al. 2005, Nair et al. 2009, Sun et al. 2000)”
[7]. Therefore, if exposure of residents to
radiation doses of a few hundred mSv per
year is detrimental to their health causing
increased risk of cancer, it should be evident
in these people. In spite of this, nearly
all residents still live in their paternal dwellings
and there are not consistent reports on
any detrimental effects [8-9]. we should
consider that only a very small part of the
Ramsar population is living in high background
radiation areas. Therefore, due to
small sample size, a firm conclusion about
the cancer risk cannot be drawn.
Conclusion
The mean annual dose of the residents of
high background radiation areas of Ramsar
is 10 times higher than the public dose limit
recommended by the ICRP and a proportion
of the residents receive annual doses
as large as 260 mSv that is 13 times higher
than the occupational dose limit recommended
by the ICRP. The latter dose is
much higher than that of the Martian surface.
High background radiation areas of
Ramsar has increasingly attracted attention
of the media. Despite there is not consistent
reports on any detrimental effects, to draw
a firm conclusion about the health effects
of high level natural radiation in Ramsar,
in particular about the cancer risk, current
information, at least to some extent due to
small sample size, is not sufficient and further
studies are needed.
Conflict of Interest
Authors declare no competing interests.
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