Determination of natural radionuclides and some metal concentrations in human tooth samples in the Rize province, Turkey

Abstract

The main purpose of this study was to identify the concentrations of naturally occurring radionuclides (Ra-226, Th-232 and K-40) and some metals (Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, Pb and Cd) in tooth samples collected from humans living in the Rize province of Turkey. It was found that the activity concentrations ranged from 8.1 to 114.51 Bq kg(-1) for Ra-226, from 10.44 to 97.3 Bq kg(-1) for Th-232 and from 14.53 to 489.27 Bq kg(-1) for K-40. the mean activity concentration values of Ra-226 and Th-232 in tooth samples were higher than the average world values for bones. Furthermore, when the metal concentrations were examined, there was no regular increase or decrease according to age or sex. the results of the metal analysis on the tooth samples were compared with the results of similar studies and were generally found to be consistent.