Biomonitoring of trace elements and gross alpha/beta radioactivity levels in human teeth: A case study from Istanbul, Turkey

The purpose of this study is to determine the amount of various trace elements and the concentration of gross alpha and gross beta radioactivity in human teeth and also find out their possible effects on humans. Fifty-six tooth samples were collected from female and male subjects of four different age groups, all of whom reside in Istanbul (0-18, 19-30, 31-45, 45+). In addition, the variation of trace elements such as Al, Ba, Ca, Cl, F, Fe, K, Mg, Na, P, S, Si, Sr and Zn for the age groups of both genders was examined by trace element analysis. The mean gross alpha and gross beta concentrations were observed in the range of 31.0-47.8 Bq/kg and 71.2-89.2 Bq/kg respectively for the female subjects and 52.7-82.1 Bq/kg and 114.0-154.4 Bq/kg respectively for the male subjects. The radioactivity level was higher in the tooth samples of the male subjects than those of the female subjects. The results, when compared with similar studies, suggest that the concentrations of both gross alpha and gross beta radioactivity in the female subjects were quite smaller than those in the male subjects. Furthermore, it was observed that the concentrations of trace elements were generally the highest in the age groups of 31-45 and 45+, which are around the time when the body functions in humans start slowing down. The findings of study would be useful for creating a biomonitoring database, which has not yet been done in this area of study.