Hormesis--basic, generalizable, central to toxicology and a method to improve the risk-assessment process.

Hormesis, a dose-response phenomenon characterized by a low-dose stimulation and a high-dose inhibition, has been the object of controversy due to its challenging of basic understandings of the dose-response relationship and implications for risk assessment. The author addresses issues relating to the definition of hormesis, the relationship of hormesis to risk assessment and risk management, and the generalizability of hormesis within the toxicological literature.