Problems of risk communication: methodological approaches to the use of sociological data in planning of information work with the population on radiation safety issues

The article presents results of the study of consumption levels of different types of forest mushrooms by residents of the most contaminated south-western territories of the Bryansk region in the remote period after the Chernobyl accident. To collect and analyze the data, the method of face-to-face questionnaire survey of adult population was applied according to individual questionnaires developed by the staff of Federal Funded Institution of Science «Saint-Petersburg Research Institute of Radiation Hygiene after Professor P.V. Ramzaev». In addition to general information, the questionnaires included questions about the species composition of the mushroom basket, the volume and proportion of consumption of each type of mushrooms by the respondent and his/her family members (both in the current and previous seasons). In the period from 2019 to 2022, within the framework of the “Program of joint activities of Russia and Belarus in the framework of the Union State for the protection of the population and rehabilitation of the territories affected by the Chernobyl NPP disaster”, the staff of the Saint-Petersburg Research Institute of Radiation Hygiene after Professor P.V. Ramzaev conducted the questionnaire survey of the respondents. Based on the analysis of data from individual interviews with 1 756 adult respondents, the group (61% of respondents) that could potentially receive an additional contribution to internal dose from mushroom consumption was identified. According to the research, the average consumption of mushrooms by the local population (including those who excluded mushrooms from their diet) is 4,7 kg/year per person, while the average consumption of mushrooms by the group of respondents whose diet includes mushrooms is 7,9 kg/year per person. The structure of the mushroom diet for respondents who eat mushrooms is as follows: cep /boletus edulis (28%), chanterelles / cantharellus cibarius (19%), annulated boletus / suillus luteus (14%), orange-cup boletus / leccinium aurantiacum (11%), rough boletus / leccinium scabrum (10%), honey fungus / armilaria mellea (9%), whitish russula /russila delica and orange milkcap / lactarius deterrimus (5%), yellow knight / tricholoma equestre(3%), russules / russula (0,3%) and various rarely consumed mushrooms (oyster mushrooms, coral milkcaps, paxils, morels, stitches, bay bolete and champignons – 1%).

Section: материалы и методыunclassified

Consumption structure of forest mushrooms by residents of contaminated districts of the Bryansk region in the remote period after the Chernobyl accident

Varfolomeeva,

Zelentsova,

Repin

2023

Radiation risk perception among parents and legal representatives of children undergoing radiological examinations

Библин

Davydov

Водоватов

et al. 2022

Risk communication is one of the stages of health risk analysis and is an interactive process of exchange of information and opinions about risks, including medical risks, between risk assessment specialists, decision makers, the media, stakeholder groups and the public. In organizing interaction with stakeholders in the risk communication process, sociological research helps to explore the attitudes of the actors. One of risk communication situations in the field of radiation protection is information provision to patients and their legal representatives about radiation health risks due to the medical radiology examinations. The aim of this study was to assess the radiation risk perception among parents and legal representatives of children undergoing radiological examinations. Parents and legal representatives of children undergoing hospital treatment from November 2021 to March 2022 were interviewed in a large pediatric infectious diseases hospital. A questionnaire designed at St. Petersburg Research Institute of Radiation Hygiene was used for the interviews. In total, 125 people were interviewed. The study showed that there were no significant differences in the perception of radiation risks among parents and legal representatives of children undergoing inpatient treatment with different socio-demographic characteristics. The level of knowledge was not identified as a factor shaping a tolerant attitude toward medical radiation risks. Parents and legal representatives of children undergoing hospital treatment show high rates of trust in the attending physicians and medicine in general. The study results show that those who have been informed about the risks generally have lower risk perception for radiological medical examinations than those who have not been informed about the risks.

Preferred techniques for forest mushrooms cooking by residents of contaminated areas of the Bryansk region in the remote period after the Chernobyl accident

Varfolomeeva,

Zelentsova,

Repin

2024

The article presents results of the analysis of questionnaire survey data on preferences in the choice of cooking methods of different types of forest mushrooms by residents of the most contaminated south-western districts of the Bryansk region in the remote period after the Chernobyl accident. In the period from 2019 to 2022, the employees of Federal Budgetary Institution of Science «Saint-Petersburg Research Institute of Radiation Hygiene after Professor P.V. Ramzaev» conducted a face-to-face questionnaire survey of the adult population. In addition to general questions about the respondent, the questionnaires included questions about the species composition of the mushroom basket, the volume and proportion of consumption of each type of mushroom by the respondent and his family members (both in the current and last year), as well as methods of culinary processing of the mushrooms consumed. Based on the analysis of individual survey data, a group of 1 311 respondents, whose diet included various types of mushrooms, was selected. Analysis of the survey results showes that respondents prefer to process a large proportion of freshly picked forest mushrooms (59%) for long-term storage (pickling, freezing, drying, salting, etc.); 41% of mushrooms are consumed immediately. The most popular pretreatments of freshly picked mushrooms are washing and boiling (34 and 26%, respectively). When freezing, pickling and pickling up to 97% of respondents carry out pre-treatment (rinsing, soaking and / or boiling) of freshly picked mushrooms. Less popular methods of the mushroom preparation (from 2 to 4%) are pickling, drying and frying of fresh mushrooms with their subsequent preservation. Thus, the majority of respondents actively use various types of culinary processing with the use of preliminary stages of technological processing in the form of rinsing, soaking and (or) boiling. The use of the above methods of pre-cooking of freshly harvested mushrooms leads to a decrease in the 137Cs content in the consumed product.