Banana Equivalent Dose

The Banana Equivalent Dose calculator returns the equivalent radiation from a number of bananas

INSTRUCTIONS: Enter the following:

• (n) Number of Bananas

Banana Equivalent Dose (BED): The calculator returns the radiation dose in Sieverts (Sv)

The Math / Science

vCalc conversion equation computes the dosage of absorbed radiation amount called a Banana Equivalent Dose (BED).

The BED is an informal measurement of ionizing radiation exposure.  The term BED was intended as a comparative example of a dose of radioactivity one could be exposed to by eating one average-sized banana.   A banana is known to contain naturally occurring radioactive materials, like potassium-40. One BED is approximated to be 0.1 µSv. 

The exposure from a banana is not cumulative, as the radioactive component is excreted.  The BED is only meant to inform the public about the existence of very low levels of natural radioactivity within a natural food and is not a formally adopted dose measurement.

There is no input value in this equation.  The equation produces exactly 1 BED unit. So, you can use this Bed unit in other vCalc equations.