Simulation of radioactive contamination and the health risks from consuming contaminated sweet potatoes

This study investigates the contamination of sweet potatoes by 137Cs following a hypothetical radiological dispersion event, assessing its implications for food safety and public health. Given the increasing concerns about nuclear energy expansion, this research is particularly relevant to agricultural systems, which are crucial to food security. Using HotSpot Health Physics Codes (v3.1.2), we simulated the radionuclide dispersion in a sweet potato farming area, considering environmental factors like atmospheric stability and soil properties. The model assesses the transfer of radioactive material to crops and the potential health risks to consumers. The evaluation links 137Cs exposure to an increased risk of leukemia, represented by the excess risk of its fatal occurrence over a lifetime, emphasizing the need for post-radiological incident monitoring. The results of the simulations suggest, for example, that the concentration of activity of 137Cs in the root of the sweet potato can vary by up to 3 orders of magnitude for the same location, depending on variations in the local atmospheric stability classes. Such sensitivity was also observed for the risk of developing radiation-induced leukemia, whose average values for the adopted radionuclide-to-plant Transfer Factors models may differ by up to 2 orders of magnitude depending on the same variables. Through computational modeling, this study offers insights into the threat posed by radiological contaminants in food chains and underscores the importance of surveillance measures in protecting public health.