Full Body Scanners Ruled Safe at Airports

The European Commission stopped new trials of body scanners due to fears they could emit harmful radiation. It permitted Manchester Airport to continue with its trials pending the outcome from an independent study into the health risks.

The EC’s Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR) said ”In view of the low doses from back scatter security scanners there is no scientific basis to separately consider potentially vulnerable groups, eg, pregnant women, children, in risk assessment.

Cumulative doses are very likely to remain below the constraints with back scatter scanners even for frequently scanned individuals. The radiation doses to screened passengers are very low compared with other sources (eg, the cosmic radiation received during the flight) even after taking into account the likely number of scans received by frequent flyers.”

The European Commission now has to decide whether to allow Manchester to continue using the scanners on a permanent basis. Passengers who refuse to go through the scanners are nor permitted to fly. Staff analysing the X rays are not allowed to see the passengers and must be kept in a separate room during the process.