How much is dental x-ray radiation?

Dental X-ray Radiation

When you get a dental X-ray, the amount of radiation you’re exposed to is very small. For example, a single dental X-ray typically exposes you to about 0.005 millisieverts (mSv) of radiation.
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Comparing to Daily Radiation Exposure

Now, let's compare that to other sources of radiation you might encounter daily:

• Natural Background Radiation: Every day, just by living on Earth, you get about 0.01 mSv of radiation from natural sources like the sun, soil, and even the air. So, the radiation from one dental X-ray is about half of what you get just from being outside in the world for a day.
• Airplane Travel: If you take a flight from New York to Los Angeles, you’re exposed to about 0.04 mSv. That’s eight times more than a dental X-ray!
• Chest X-ray: A medical chest X-ray exposes you to about 0.1 mSv, which is twenty times more than a dental X-ray.
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Fun Fact! 

Eating a banana actually exposes you to a tiny amount of radiation because bananas contain a natural radioactive isotope called potassium-40.
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Banana Radiation

• One Banana: Eating a single banana exposes you to about 0.0001 millisieverts (mSv) of radiation.
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Dental X-ray Comparison

• Dental X-ray: A single dental X-ray exposes you to about 0.005 mSv of radiation.
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Putting It Together

• Comparison: The radiation from one dental X-ray is equivalent to eating about 50 bananas.

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