Bananas Are Slightly Radioactive

Bananas are radioactive, but only in a technical sense. The US Environmental Protection Agency explains that bananas are a good source of potassium, and that a small fraction of all potassium is radioactive. Eating one banana delivers a total dose of 0.01 millirem, or 0.1 microsieverts, of radiation. The agency calls this a very small amount. To put it in proportion, the EPA says a person would need to eat about 100 bananas to receive the same exposure they get each day in the United States from natural radiation in the environment. Its conclusion is direct: because the amount of radiation is very small, these foods do not pose a radiation risk.