Assessment of beta-emitting radionuclide accumulation in food and tobacco products during long-term storage

Bi activity, indicating a disruption of radioactive equilibrium. The measured activity concentrations in food products were several orders of magnitude below national hygienic standards. Based on consumption data, the annual effective dose was estimated: for long-stored buckwheat, it may reach up to 21% of the average global dose from natural radionuclides in food, whereas for tobacco products, the additional inhalation dose ranged from 1.83 to 7.61 μSv/year. The results highlight the importance of considering storage duration in the radiological risk assessment of dry food products and demonstrate the need for separate dosimetric approaches for tobacco products due to their fundamentally different radionuclide behavior.