Radiotoxic 210Po activity concentrations of various foodstuffs grown in Türkiye with ingestion dose evaluation

Abstract Radioisotopes from the environment reach the human body through food or drink and by breathing therefore it is very important to determine the concentration of the most important and naturally occurring radionuclides in the diet. The Turkish diet generally consists of a wide range of foods, including cereals, vegetables, fruits, and animal products; therefore, samples were gathered from different provinces to reflect this diversity. The rich and varied culinary tradition of Turkey is a reflection of its geographic location between Europe and the Middle East. In this study, the radiotoxic 210 Po activity concentrations in 30 different food samples collected from various provinces were measured using an alpha spectroscopy system after each food sample was prepared for analysis by radiochemical methods. Then, annual effective ingestion dose rates from 210 Po radionuclides in daily consumed foods grown in Türkiye were determined. Since the specific data on 210 Po concentration in Turkish foodstuffs is lacking, local studies are essential to determine accurately the annual effective dose received from 210 Po radioisotope in foodstuffs for the Turkish population. The highest 210 Po activity concentration value obtained was determined to be 4.14 ± 1.1 Bq kg −1 , and the lowest 210 Po concentration value was 0.13 ± 0.07 Bq kg −1 . When the annual effective ingestion dose values were calculated, the maximum value was 147.92 µSv y −1 and the minimum value was 0.28 µSv y −1 . The values obtained from the study were compared with similar study results in the literature and the limit values determined by UNSCEAR.