Thorium - 90Th: biological information
Thorium has no biological role.
Levels in humans
The abundances of the elements in humans.
- Human abundance by weight: (no data) ppb by weight
- Human abundance by atoms: (no data) atoms relative to C = 1000000
How much thorium is in your body? Find out here.
You can use this form to calculate how much thorium your body contains. Enter your weight in either kilograms or pounds and click the "Calculate" button. You must enter a number, not text! Elements for which there are no data will always give a value of zero for the weight, no matter what you put in the weight box.
Hazards and Risks
Hazards and risks associated with thorium:
Thorium does not occur to any significant extent in the biosphere and so normally never presents a risk. Thorium is studied in a few nuclear research laboratories and has a few commercial applications but in all cases its high radioactivity makes it subject to special handling techniques and precautions. It seems that small amounts can cause dermatitis while larger amounts result in cancer.
References
- J.E. Huheey, E.A. Keiter, and R.L. Keiter in Inorganic Chemistry : Principles of Structure and Reactivity, 4th edition, HarperCollins, New York, USA, 1993.
- S. Budavari (Ed.) in The Merck Index, 11th ed., Merck, USA, 1989.
- N.N. Greenwood and A. Earnshaw in Chemistry of the Elements, 2nd edition, Butterworth, UK, 1997.