Should you be worried about nuking your thyroid?

There is a lot of stuff out there, especially having the web at our fingertips, concerning what is good and bad for you. The only problem is, if you read about all the stuff that supposedly is bad for you, you would be eating raw organic carrots for every meal with a glass of water. Okay, maybe not that bad, but it has made me think more before I put just about anything in my mouth.
I bring up Dr. Oz because apparently last week on his television show they were discussing dental x-rays and the thyroid. Based on my phones lighting up at my office after this aired, I came to two conclusions. The first is that there must be a lot of people who watch Dr. Oz. The second is that Dr. Oz must have made it seem that if you do not protect your thyroid when you have dental x-rays you will get cancer. I did not see the show so I do not know exactly what was said but I will tell you what I know about dental x-rays and the thyroid.
Dental x-rays have come a long way in the sense that radiation exposure has been greatly reduced over the last few decades. It started with a change in the machinery used to take the x-rays; then the film speed was increased which decreased the amount of exposure time needed to capture the film. Now we have digital x-rays. Depending on where you start the comparison, dental radiation exposure has decreased 60-90% with the move to digital.
My feeling about the protection of the thyroid with dental x-rays is that it can’t hurt to cover the neck when taking the films. However, with some films, the thyroid lead collar is in the way and can affect the diagnostic quality of the film.
It is interesting to note that the Health Physics Society, which is a scientific and professional organization whose members specialize in occupational and environmental radiation safety, and the American Thyroid Association both state that thyroid cancer is NOT caused from routine radiographs, including dental x-rays. In other things I have read, the increase in thyroid cancer is most likely due to better diagnostic tests and earlier detection.
Based on all the information out there, one thing is clearly expressed in many of the scientific literature pieces; the benefit of regular dental x-rays far outweighs the disadvantages. I still have patients who come in and say, “I would like to skip the x-rays today because I have had too many x-rays lately.” Of course it depends on the specific situation with each patient. If a patient has been lucky enough to have minimal restorative dentistry in their mouth and has had a low decay rate, I do not mind putting off x-rays for 6 months – even though the exposure is so minimal.
However, more commonly, the patient that refuses radiographs has a mouthful of dentistry. Skipping regular radiographs is extremely risky for both the patient and the dentist. Remember, the dentist is responsible for diagnosis and diagnosis cannot be complete without proper x-rays.
Dr. St. Clair maintains a private dental practice in Rowley and Newburyport dedicated to health-centered family dentistry. If there are certain topics you would like to see written about or questions you have please email them to him at jpstclair@dentalhealthforlife.com. You can view all previously written columns at www.dentalhealthforlife.com