Ionizing radiation poses a greater risk to men than women, according to new paper. The briefing, released yesterday by U.S.-based anti-nuclear group Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS), cites an under-reported 2006 National Academy of Sciences report on the biological effects of ionizing radiation. Women exposed to ionizing radiation, says NIRS, are 50% more likely to develop cancer than men who receive the same dose. Women’s risk of death from radiation-induced cancer is also 50% greater than men’s, according to the NIRS briefing.

“This information comes at a crucial time for Fukushima because there are countless young women with children who want to leave the area but cannot because they do not have the economic means to do so,” said Aileen Mioko Smith of Green Action, Japan. “The most vulnerable population — pregnant women, children and women in general — are trapped because the Japanese government does not provide financial compensation.”

Download the NIRS briefing paper, “Atomic Radiation is More Harmful to Women” (PDF)

Internet site reference: http://fukushima.greenaction-japan.org