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Radiation Hormesis and the Linear-No-Threshold Assumption pp 185–196Cite as

Lifespan, Birth Defects, and Experimental Cancer

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The Radiation Effects Research Foundation (RERF), which is a cooperative Japan—U.S. study of Japanese A-bomb survivors, has several research functions. Among them are life span, birth defect, and in utero studies (Table 13.1).

Effects of aging can be slowed or prevented by lifestyle changes, nutritional strategies and steady, continuous exercise sufficient to make muscle cells need increased amounts of oxygen. Feeding rodents ad libitum nutritionally rich, high-calorie diets results in poor survival compared with the beneficial effects of simple caloric restriction. The beneficial effects of caloric restriction on lifespan have been documented in invertebrates, rodents, and other vertebrates such as fish, birds, other mammals, and humans. A 30–40% caloric restriction in rodents lowers the incidence and/or delays the onset of most spontaneous tumors, reduces the severity and/or onset of many spontaneous degenerative diseases, and extends average and maximal lifespan [1–4].

Increased ionizing radiation in radiation-deficient environments provides an increased lifespan and abundant health

(TD Luckey)

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Nuclear and Quantum Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), 335 Gwahak-ro (373-1 Guseong-dong), Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 305-701, Republic of Korea

    Charles L. Sanders

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(2010). Lifespan, Birth Defects, and Experimental Cancer. In: Sanders, C.L. (eds) Radiation Hormesis and the Linear-No-Threshold Assumption. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-03720-7_13

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-03720-7_13

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