September 12, 2003—The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has added a new safety and health topics page on Radiation to the organization’s Web site. The page provides technical information on radiation and its sources, research links, and regulatory information. Sources of radiation, which OSHA defines as energy traveling through space, are found in a wide range of occupational settings. If radiation is not properly controlled, it can be potentially hazardous to the health of workers. All forms of ionizing radiation have sufficient energy to ionize atoms that may destabilize molecules within cells and lead to tissue damage. Non-ionizing radiation is essential to life, but excessive exposures will cause tissue damage.
Ionizing radiation sources can be found in a wide range of occupational settings, including health care facilities, research institutions, nuclear reactors and their support facilities, nuclear weapon production facilities, and other various manufacturing settings.
Non-ionizing radiation includes the spectrum of ultraviolet (UV), visible light, infrared, microwave, radio frequency, and extremely low frequency. Lasers commonly operate in the UV, visible, and IR frequencies. Sources of non-ionizing radiation include power lines, electrical wiring, and electrical equipment; radio emitters and cell phones; furnaces, heat lamps, and infrared lasers; and the sun, black lights, welding arcs, and UV lasers.
