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You are here: Home / Science / How much radiation do you get when you are x-rayed?

How much radiation do you get when you are x-rayed?

April 24, 2020 by Karen Hill

A regular, routine chest X ray gives you the equivalent of three days’ worth of background radiation, —the levels of radiation you receive naturally from the sun, Earth, and other celestial bodies over the course of three days.

A full-body CAT scan gives you the equivalent of four years of background radiation.

This means that unless you’re getting a full body scan regularly, the benefits of X rays probably vastly outweigh their risks.

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Filed Under: Science

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

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