Age-dependent effective ingestion dose estimations and lifetime risk assessment for selected radionuclides (K and H) in bottled waters marketed in United Arab Emirates.

Monitoring drinking water, including bottled water, is imperative to safeguarding public health especially where bottled water consumption is high like in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). In this study, radionuclide activity levels of Tritium (H) and Potassium (K) were assessed in various brands of bottled water marketed in UAE. Activity level data was used to calculate the annual effective doses (E) for different age groups, and the excess lifetime cancer risk (ELCR) for adult males and females in the UAE population. Activity levels for both radionuclides were below the allowable maximum guideline values specified by local and international standards. Calculated total age dependent ingestion doses revealed that adults and lactation age groups received the highest effective ingestion doses. Adult males exhibited a higher ELCR for both isotopes, compared to females. Nonetheless, total radioactive dose for each water brand (0.91-1.47 μSv/yr) as well as for each population group were well below the recommended annual reference dose level of 100 μSv set by World Health Organization. Therefore, bottled water in the UAE is safe from the radiological aspect for investigated radionuclides, and poses no significant radiological exposure and health risk to the public.