Radiocesium in diet and humans in northeastern Poland after the Chernobyl accident.

137Cs and 134Cs concentrations were determined in the daily diet and foodstuffs in northeastern Poland in the fourth through sixth years after the Chernobyl accident. Intakes, body burdens, and dose equivalents were evaluated in the consecutive years. The data from this and previous work were used for the calculation of the effective half-time of radiocesium in humans. The effective half-time for 137Cs (1.94 y) was similar to that observed after nuclear weapons tests. The effective half-time for 134Cs was 0.98 y. Taking these half-times into account, the whole-body committed dose equivalent for the adult population was estimated to be 256 microSv; it was about 50% higher than that after the nuclear weapons tests.