Page 4 RAIN February-March 1979 This important article excerpted from Whole Person Health Care, by Mark Tager a·nd Charl'l?s Jennings, was reprinted by permission. This recently.published book is available from Victoria House Publishers, 2218 N.E. 8th, Portland,·OR 97212, for $8.95. (See Rain review December 1978.) - LS '11() X • Il1\Y f)ll Nf)'t1 .• '11() X ·Il1\Y ? by Mark Tager and Charles Jennings In light of recent findings on the adverse effects of low-level radiation exposure (see Health Activism, pages 281 ff.), the medical, dental and chiropractic use of X-rays is coming under increasing scrutiny. Helen Caldicott, M.D., of Australia, an internationally known authority on the medical effects of low-level radiation, now claims that there is no safe level of exposure to radiation. We are deeply impressed with her work. It ha9. long been established that even low levels of radiation (for sustained periods) can produce mutations in plants and animals by bringing about changes .in chromosomes. There is every reason to conclude that these genetic changes occur in humans also. Children of American radiologists have been found to suffer genetic defects well above the statistical norm, and the tragic effects of radiation on the children of survivors. IONIZING RADIATION- I .llilN .SULruR•J' ""·"':1' ID{1fi}J~"~"-' ..,.alla,cka:tby:att~ .. ""1-, ~;~u7o~i..~"~~ known tD a,nu.ntnnr u, l.,_; ~ads Tlw rad.llon ll nnil, 0111 r--<t bu-tticidrrb MldftatU /Ind n,u· ~.,.. t+.t- firwt- _y,11Crn1to11 ftY'or~Nldor,i1cus,"" .5""""-. loDJ;!:.:~~i,l':,,J U>Jl/,L, -61' .,._ .. ',,,. KllVPTON - ~S _,. .. .,. "'.'f"' ltln11LNlllM · '°' .,.. . . •:r· z111c· •.J .,-..- .t,t.r~t' .8.4RlllM ·110 ~;;I~~~• .,--. ""' CDn \M · 1J1 ,..... , .,t'fr'l l'UfiOIOUM ·239 ~ . H ... _y,. Q».MJ"U.t, AiL)Alk J ffOlr W11CLU.II. r,-, ~ 4 0 • IDNf.YS R.lllllL!<IUM· 106 .,......,..,. ,.,,. Clamshell Alliance Poster of Nagasaki .and Hiroshima are well known. Perhaps the most •disturbing aspect.of the radiation problem is that there appears to be no exposure level below which health and genetic effects are entirely absent. While alL the evidence regarding the diagnostic use of Xrays '(a form of radiation) is not yet in, there have been enough scientific correlations drawn between X-rays and cancer to lead us to believe that they are indeed dangerous. Unfortunately, there are times when not allowing your physician to take X-rays of your condition may be even more dangerous. The only prudent course open to us at this time is to assume that there is no su'ch thing as a safe 'X-ray, and try to evaluate when the acknowledged risk of X-ray exposure will be worth taking. To x.ray, or not to X-ray? The decision of whether to use X-rays in dia'gnostic procedures is too important to be left to the doctor alone. Doctors are as human as the rest .of us, and not every decision is made from an enlightened health perspective. Some doctors make ' use of X-rays when the waiting room starts tp fill up ("Why don't you send the kid with the knee pain to X-ray first?"), others use them to enrich their personal store of medical and . anatomical knowledge, and still others make extensive use of X-rays to a~sure that their own posteriors are well protected from the boot of malpractice. You may not want to expose your organic1 molecules to the threat of radiation for these reasons. Yet obviously there are many other reasons for taking X-rays which may be well justified. In a general sens.e, the most valid X-ray is one which will affect the course .of treatment by providing information which cannot be obtained in any other manner. And so a final determination of whether or not to take an X-ray in any specific instance must foc;us on - the medical treatment which follows the X-ray. This, we believe, is the central issue in the diagnostic use of X-rays. What kind of treatment is being considered? Will st1ch treatment vitally affect your life and function, or is it designed to correct a minor annoyance or pain? In other words, will the treatment which results from the X-rays ·save or prolong your life, or have a direct bearing on your ability to function as a human being? If it arrests a malignancy, heals a duodenal ulcer, mends a fractured bone, or permits a dentist to eliminate a painful throbbing toothache, the answer is yes. If the treatment is related to a S<'-'.,lf-limiting condition- a short-term injury which will heal itself, or a short-term disease with no lasting consequences-the answer is no. In order to help you come to an understanding with your doctor concerning the use of X-rays, we h?,ve prepared a list of X-ray guidelines which refer to specific types of diagnostic X-rays. This list is in no way intended to replace your physician in the X-ray decision-making process. Admittedly, our list is oversimplified. We offer it primarily to provide a frame of reference within which to discuss this whole question with your doctor. -.
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