United States (again)

"Studies of populations chronically exposed to low-level radiation, such as those residing in regions of elevated natural radiation, have not shown consistent or conclusive evidence of an associated increase in the risk of cancer." [This statement conflicts with the conclusions of the report.] [From the Executive Summary, Carcinogenic Effects. Biological Effects of Ionizing Radiation Committee (BEIR) of the National Academy of Science, Report V, 1990, p. 5.

In a study of 900,000 U.S. residents with various levels of radium in water supplies, the BEIR was confounded by finding more bone cancer in Chicago - with only 1 mBq/l - than in the areas where the level exceeded 110 mBq/l. [From BEIR IV, Health Risks of Radon and Other Deposited Alpha Emitters, National Academy Press, Washington, D.C., 1988.]

A multivariant examination of forty-three urban populations of the United States showed a statistically significant negative correlation [more radiation, less cancer] between total cancer mortality and background levels of ionizing radiation. [Hickey, R.J., et al. Low level ionizing radiation and human mortality; multi-regional epidemiological studies. Health Physics, 40, 625, 1981.]