Radionuclide Analysis of Some Locally Consumed Herbal Plants Commonly Used in Katsina State, Nigeria

Abstract

The need to investigate the presence of radionuclides in herbs is paramount as they have direct link to the soil which is the main source of terrestrial radionuclides and heavy metals. Ten (10) medicinal plants commonly sold and consumed in Katsina Urban, were studied using thallium activated sodium iodide detector gamma spectrometric set up to measure the natural radionuclides present in the samples. Potassium-40 (⁴⁰K), Uranium-238 (²³⁸U), and Thorium-232 (²³²Th) were measured in all the samples. The activity concentration of K-40 ranged between 64.57 - 777.06 Bq/kg, U-238 ranged between 175.88 Bq/kg - 369.10 Bq/kg, while Th-232 ranged between 0.20 - 9.52 Bq/kg. The absorbed dose ranged between 108.02 nGy/h – 198.88 nGy/h while the annual effective dose due to the radionuclide’s intake ranged between 0.13 μSv/y – 0.24 μSv/y. The annual effective dose for K-40, U-238 and Th-232 was found to be lower than the limit set by United Nation Scientific Committee on Energy and Atomic Research of 0.48 mSv/y. The radiological hazard indices calculated ranged between 1.09 - 2.14 and 0.62- 1.5 for the internal and external hazard indices respectively. The results of our findings indicates that there is serious radiological risk in consuming these plants for medicinal purposes.