22. Bystander effect for special goals

23. Hormesis(definition)

By definition, hormesis is a generally favorable biological response to low exposures to toxins or stressors that would give an unfavorable response at high exposures.

Some studies of worker populations, plants, animals, and cells have shown favorable health outcomes at low exposures of radiation as compared to adverse outcomes at high exposures. However, these studies have not been accepted as proof of a hormetic effect from radiation.

There are some studies in which the authors report that cells exposed to a small amount of radiation (called a conditioning dose) can actually produce what they refer to as an adaptive response that makes cells more resistant to another dose of radiation.

Some potential issues:

Many of the results cannot be reproduced (meaning that other scientists have tried to do the same testing and get the same results, but haven’t been able to; this suggests that the initial results might have been just due to chance).

Not every type of cell has this capacity for an adaptive response.

The adaptive response does not appear to last long (so the second radiation dose would have to occur soon after the conditioning dose).

At the end of the 19th century and early in this century, low doses of radiation, mostly radium and x-rays, were considered to be medical marvels. Doctors throughout the world utilized ionizing radiation to treat a variety of diseases. They soon learned that excess exposures caused erythema and cancer. High and low doses of ionizing radiation elicit opposite reactions.

24. Scintific community and hormesis.

(???)The 1200 reports summarized in “Hormesis With Ionizing Radiation” validate radiation hormesis.

Statistically significant results with microorganisms, plants, invertebrates, and experimental animals demonstrated radiogenic metabolism (metabolism promoted by ionizing radiation) is an important life function. Low-dose irradiation of microorganisms induced increased respiration, enzyme induction (adaptation), metabolism, resistance to killing doses, and cell division. Chronic whole body exposures to low doses of ionizing radiation increased reproduction, growth, maturation and development, resistance to disease, resistance to lethal doses of radiation, and average life-span. Radiation hormesis in immunity is especially important.

There are a good number of scientific evidences that associate disease resistance with exposure to certain levels of health hazards. The medical community calls it the theory of hormesis.

The scientific community finally acknowledged hormesis as a fundamental principle in biology and medicine.

One study has demonstrated the validity of hormesis among laboratory animals. Rats that were bombarded with radiation showed less susceptibility to develop cancer when they had been exposed to minor gamma rays. A similar response was observed when dioxin was given to rats.

The biochemical mechanisms underlying hormesis are still a mystery. It is believed that a certain amount of toxin prompts repair mechanisms, which not only fight the toxin’s effect, but also the damages caused by other toxins.

Aging is one the areas where hormesis has been widely investigated. It is believed that exposure to mild stress prompts adaptive or hormetic response that fights aging. Examples of mild stresses that may trigger such response are irradiation, heat shock, hypergravity, pro-oxidants, food restriction, and physical activity.

Hormesis challenges the mainstream concept in conventional and natural medicine that if a little is good, more must be better.