Polonium-210 activity in human hair samples and factors affecting its accumulation

Background: Due to the presence of radioactive minerals such as monazite, the beach sand of the west coast of Kanyakumari exhibits high natural background radiation. Hair is a good indicator of radionuclides in the human body. An attempt is taken to measure the 210Po activity in human hair samples and the factors affecting it. Material and Methods: 210Po activity was analysed in 47 individuals including males and females living in Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu, India. The activities were measured using a Nucleonix® Radiation Counting System (RC 605A). Results: The activity was in the range of 9.89 ± 4.43 to 58.85 ± 6.27 milli Becquerel per gram. 210Po activity was observed in the hair samples when compared to the global values were comparatively higher. Conclusion: Hair samples obtained from the users of home-made and medicinal oil had higher concentration of 210Po compared to that of people using branded oils. These high values may be attributed to the hair oil usage and this is a topic of interest for future studies. Iran. J. Radiat. Res., 2011 9(1): 41-47