Radioactive Baby Teeth

In 2001, college administrators entered a remote, musty storage room near St. Louis. Not knowing what was in the room, the group was puzzled to find a large wall with hundreds of long boxes stacked against it. They pulled out one of the boxes, took off the cover, and found ---- baby teeth.

Quite by accident, the group had unearthed 85,000 baby teeth left over from a study done decades before. The study had found how much radiation from atomic bomb tests had entered human bodies, by testing teeth.
News of the discovery spread like wildfire in newspapers across the country. Coverage focused on the fact that the teeth could answer a critical question - how much cancer was caused by radiation exposure?

In this book, read about the mystery faced by scientists of how much radiation from nuclear weapons and reactors actually infiltrated people's bodies - and how much cancer it really caused. Learn about the furious opposition researchers faced from government and industry. Discover how the research helped end above-ground nuclear testing, how it challenged the claim that nuclear reactors are safe, and how it exposed an undeniable link with cancer.

Joseph Mangano draws on his direct experience and his involvement with scientists and citizens to create a lively, intriguing story - a story that continues today. Mangano is a health researcher, and is Executive Director of the Radiation and Public Health Project, based in New York.