Why You Should Seriously Think Twice Before Getting a CT Scan

We all know that certain medical tests can expose us to radiation. The question is how much radiation? Is the exposure more harmful than the benefit of the test? Many of us think about this, but no one asks and no medical providers are running around volunteering the details. So here is some information you should know, research, and consider before agreeing to your next x-ray or CT scan.

In the forefront has been the controversy about the CT scan. Doctors use this test to diagnose everything from concussions to cancers. Recent studies confirm that the frequency of drs. ordering CT scans has nearly tripled since 1996. One of the concerns is that for children, the risk of radiation exposure may be especially high.

An international study that was performed followed children who has CT scans for a 23 year period. The children who had these scans performed were THREE times as likely to develop a brain cancer and FOUR times as likely to develop a leukemia than those children who did NOT have any CT scans performed.

Scary statistics.

Sometimes there is no option and an x-ray or CT scan MUST be performed in order to rule out a life threatening condition. In those cases, where you are sure you have no other choices, the benefit far outweighs the risk. When the scan is an option, one must think long and hard before exposing yourself to that amount of radiation. Ask your doctor! Speak up! Can any other test be performed to diagnose me? Is this CT scan absolutely necessary for my health?

Studies reveal that the amount of radiation exposure from ONE CT scan is equal to:

100-250 chest x-rays

1,400 dental x-rays

240 Five Hour flights

70,000 airport scans

19 years of smoking a pack of cigarettes a day

NOW....if THAT information does not make you think...I don't know what will.