Atlanta Journal-Constitution Article

["Jim Hardeman" <Jim_Hardeman@dnr.state.ga.us>]

Posted in the 11/16 issue of the Atlanta Journal Constitution.



URL = http://www.ajc.com/business/content/business/delta/1103/16solar.html 





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Frequent fliers face radiation risks, researchers say 



By KIRSTEN TAGAMI 

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution 

 

With all the worries about air travel these days, something called "cosmic radiation" probably isn't at the top of the list for most travelers.



But radiation exposure in the skies is a growing concern among some airline workers and researchers. Some experts say ultra-frequent fliers, who may log thousands of miles each month, also should be aware of the possible risks.



"Road warriors -- people who fly so often they're on a first-name basis with the flight crews -- these people also are occupationally exposed. They are radiation workers," said Robert Barish, a medical physicist and author of "The Invisible Passenger: Radiation Risks for People Who Fly."



It's not widely known, but passengers and crews absorb increased radiation from the sun and stars every time they fly. That's because Earth's protective fields thin out at higher altitudes and latitudes. For most passengers, under normal conditions, it's not enough to be a concern.



During solar storms like the one that occurred two weeks ago, the dose can be 10 to 20 times greater than usual, however, or the equivalent of two to three chest X-rays every hour.



The recent storms prompted a scientist at the Federal Aviation Administration to issue an advisory suggesting that airline pilots temporarily stay below 25,000 feet when traveling at higher latitudes, where more radiation reaches aircraft.



It's not known how many airlines followed the advice. Delta Air Lines, the Atlanta-based carrier, did not alter the usual altitude of its flights, said spokesman John Kennedy.



The amount of radiation from a single flight -- even during a solar storm -- isn't enough to exceed the recommended limit, even for pregnant travelers, according to Wallace Friedberg, who leads the FAA's radiobiology research team.



It's the regular, long-term exposure of flight crews that is more worrisome to most researchers.



When retired Delta flight attendant Cathy Cone first heard about cosmic radiation a few years ago, "I pooh-poohed it as no big deal," she said. "I figured if it was something we needed to be concerned about, Delta would be doing something about it."



But in the past year, three friends -- all current or former flight attendants -- have been diagnosed with cancer. Cone is no longer so quick to dismiss the possible health effects of cosmic radiation.



Although there's no way to know if work-related exposure to radiation had anything to do with her friends' cancers, "it did make me think," she said. "It's something we talk about now."



Europe's rules differ



European airlines are required to inform flight crews of the possible health risks from flying and must keep a running estimate of radiation exposure for each crew member. Airlines must also reorganize pregnant workers' schedules to keep their exposure very low.



There are no such requirements in the United States, something that angers Judith Murawski, an industrial hygienist for the Association of Flight Attendants, the biggest attendants union.



The FAA plans to post a technical report about in-flight radiation on its Web site this fall, but that's not enough, Murawski said.



"The average crew member is never going to know about this," she said. "Can you imagine saying to a nuclear power plant worker, 'Oh, we posted information on some obscure Web site?' It's not right to have a separate standard for flight attendants and pilots."



Murawski and Barish both say flight crews and passengers should be routinely informed about radiation, particularly during solar storms.



"The idea of getting two or three X-rays an hour without your knowledge is just shocking," Murawski said. "It's wrong that people are subjected to this without their knowledge."



Information online



Delta provides information about in-flight radiation to its employees on the company's internal Web site, under the category "Spotlight on Health and Safety," Kennedy said. The Web site advises pregnant flight crew members to talk to their doctors about their working conditions.



Delta doesn't take a position on whether in-flight radiation poses a danger to non-pregnant workers because U.S. medical authorities can't say with certainty that it does, Kennedy said.



Some recent studies have found that flight crews face an increased risk of developing cancer, however. Cosmic radiation is a possible reason, according to the researchers.



The November issue of Occupational and Environmental Medicine reports on findings from three studies that focused on thousands of cabin crew members from Nordic countries.



In one study, researchers studied cabin crews for a particularly deadly skin cancer, malignant melanoma. The study, which adjusted for sunbathing and other lifestyle factors, found men who flew for a living doubled their chances of developing the condition and women had 3.5 times the increased risk.



The study's author, Dr. Vilhjalmur Rafnsson, a professor of preventative medicine at the University of Iceland, noted that the crews' routes were in higher latitudes with greater exposure to ionizing radiation. Irregular working hours and disturbances to the body's internal clock also could be involved, according to an accompanying editorial by Dr. Elizabeth Whelan of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.



In the United States, the CDC's National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health is conducting several long-term studies of flight attendants and pilots to see if they have an increased risk of cancer or reproductive problems.



Cosmic radiation is complex and can't be reproduced in a lab with test animals, she said.



Scientists know there is a link between various kinds of cancer and radiation exposure, but they don't know if there is a risk from cosmic radiation in doses received by flight crews, said Martha Waters, a scientist with NIOSH.





Jim Hardeman, Manager

Environmental Radiation Program

Environmental Protection Division

Georgia Department of Natural Resources

4244 International Parkway, Suite 114

Atlanta, GA 30354

(404) 362-2675

Fax: (404) 362-2653

E-mail: Jim_Hardeman@dnr.state.ga.us

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