Health hazards of ionising radiation exposure: the case of radium

Health hazards due to the exposure of radium were perceived as soon as 1903 when it was observed that excessively dosed radiations can cause skin damage looking like burns. The discovery of radium occurred in 1898 and at that time the general idea was to consider low radiation doses as having a therapeutic effect. This document gathers 2 early newspaper articles describing the adverse effects of radium: one dated May 1903 and the other June 1903. In both articles burns, called dermatitis, are reported, it is also surprising to see that a negative effect on seed germination was acknowledged so early. The last part of the document is dedicated to the 'radium girls'. 'Radium girls' composed the staff of the United States Radium Corporation enterprise and their job was to paint clock hands and dials using radium-based paints specificity of which was to be luminescent. Most of the women suffered from anemia, bone breaks and from jaw necrosis because they were recommended to use their lips to make the brush tip thinner. In 1924 the 'radium jaw' was considered as a disease due to the ingestion of radium-based paint. In 1929 an investigation was launched, it ended with the publishing of a report 'Radiation poisoning' that recommended implementing measures for the protection of the employees like the banning of sucking brush tips. (A.C.)