Derived intervention levels

FDA Protective action goals and derived intervention levels by age group (Bq/kg) FDA 1998... 

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) develops standards for radioactive material concentrations in food (FDA 1998), and medical devices used in radiation therapy (FDA 1997). The FDA recently updated its guidance document that presents recommended action levels for radionuclides in foods, both domestic and imported (FDA 1998). These derived intervention levels (DILs) are estimated levels in food that could lead to individuals receiving a radiation equivalent dose equal to the FDA protection action guide (PAG) that is set as the more limiting of either 0.5 rem (5 mSv) for committed effective dose or 5 rem (50 mSv) committed dose equivalent to any individual tissue or organ. Table 8-2 presents the most restrictive DILs for strontium. 

Derived intervention levels (DIL) are concentrations of radioactivity in food whose consumption would deliver a committed effective dose equivalent equal to the most limiting of the protection action guides (PAGs) developed by FDA (1998). 

The Food and Drug Administration has developed derived intervention levels (DIL) for food. A DIL is the concentration in food that equals the PAG if ingested over the relevant period of time. 

DIL = derived intervention level Bq/kg PAG = protective action guideline, mSv F = fraction of food assumed contaminated Food intake = quantity of food consumed kg DC = dose received per unit of activity mSv/Bq Sv = Seivert =100 rem... 

Intervention or action levels are values, in terms of radiation dose or concentrations in food, that are used to determine when protective actions should be taken to meet these objectives. Different countries and organizations use different names for these levels. For example, in the United States intervention levels are referred to as protective action guides (PAG) and action levels for food as derived intervention levels (DIL). 

TABLE 9.21 U.S. HHS Derived Intervention Levels (DIL) (Bq/kg) (radionuclide groups, most limiting of aU diets)... 

It is important to note that the EPA s PAGs cannot be used directly to interpret environmental measurements. For this purpose, derived response levels (DRLs, another name for operational intervention levels) have been established for environmental survey instruments indicating when protective actions should be taken to meet the PAGs. The DRLs will be different for different types of releases and different times during the emergency. Default DRLs for nuclear power plant release are shown in Table 9.22. 

This form of risk assessment is based on the concept of defining an exposure level, the derived standard, expressed usually on a temporal basis (e.g., daily, weekly), which is considered to offer sufficient reassurance of protection of human health, and then comparing this with an estimated level of exposure. If the estimated exposure is higher than the standard, then further regulatory intervention may be needed. Please see Section 5.12 for a discussion of the health implications of exceeding the tolerable intake. 

The Finnish fermented milk drink Evolus is fermented with a L. helveticus strain and contains the same tripeptides as Calpis . The Evolus drink has been demonstrated to exert a significant reduction in blood pressure of mildly hypertensive human subjects upon daily intake of 150 ml during a 21-week intervention period (Seppo et al., 2003). A fermented low-fat hard cheese Festivo was developed in Finland (Ryhanen et al., 2001) with probiotic lactic acid bacteria and was found to produce during maturation, high amounts of ACE-inhibitory peptides derived from asi-casein. The peptides emerged at the age of three months and their level remained rather stable at least for six months. 

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