Fun Fact Physics

Bananas are radioactive

By: Mahnoor Farooqi - Researcher

Radioactivity is the spontaneous and random emissions of radioactive particles

from an unstable nucleus. As a result anything containing atoms with unstable

nuclei can qualify as radioactive.

As an example bananas are radioactive as they contain the radioactive isotope

Potassium-40. Not to worry though, this is a very small amount of radiation and

cannot cause any sort of Physical harm. In fact the average American citizen is

exposed to more radiation through their environment and atmosphere then

through eating bananas!

But if you eat about 800 bananas that is the equivalent to a simple X-ray and

eating 2,500 bananas a year would be the equivalent of the radiation released

over ten years by a Nuclear blast. So while it does not make humans very

radioactive it is a minor source of the Radioactivity inside them.