Radiological Benefit-Risk Index for Food (IRBRF)
Embedded Files
This page hosts the software for the Radiological Benefit-Risk Index for Food (IRBRF) calculator.
The IRBRF was developed to address a gap in food safety assessment. While international bodies like the ICRP provide robust tools for calculating the radiological dose from ingesting radionuclides, there has been no unified framework to weigh that radiological risk against the nutritional benefits of food. The IRBRF was created to be a simple, quantitative tool that bridges this gap, providing an integrated measure that balances a food's nutritional profile with its radiological risk.
You can download the calculator by clicking the link below. The primary scientific article detailing the IRBRF framework can also be accessed through the adjacent link. This paper presents a comprehensive radiological evaluation of 13 flours from Brazilian sociobiodiversity, establishes the first radiometric characterization for many of these products, and details the development and application of the IRBRF index to differentiate their safety profiles.
[Access the main IRBRF article here]
Note: It is possible that upon running the program, Windows Defender will display a security warning. This can happen because the program was built using Tkinter for its graphical interface. If this occurs, please click "More info" and then "Run anyway" to proceed.
Collaboration and feedback
This project is a continuing effort. Feel free to reach out if you have new ideas on how to improve the program/methodology, suggestions for enhancements, or an interest in collaboration.
How to cite this work
If you use the IRBRF software or its methodology in your research, please cite the following publications:
Silva, L. F. da, Almeida, E. L., Thalhofer, J. L., Orejuela, C. O. P., Silva, L. B. da, & Silva, A. X. da. (2025). Radiological Assessment of Flours from Brazilian Sociobiodiversity and the development of the Radiological Benefit-Risk Index for Food (IRBRF).
Faria da Silva, L., Barbosa da Silva, L., Vendramini, A. L. do A., Pastrana Orejuela, C. O., Thalhofer, J. L., Barreto Júnior, A. G., Corrêa Barbosa Lima, I., & Xavier da Silva, A. (2025). Intra-plant radionuclides distribution in cocoa and nuts: Implications for dietary risk assessment. Journal of Food Composition and Analysis, 148(1), 108130. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfca.2025.108130
Faria da Silva, L., Barbosa da Silva, L., Dutra Garcez, R. W., Fernandes, T. S., Lopes, J. M., Mello, C. R., Kuster de Souza Paiva, A., & Xavier da Silva, A. (2022). An assessment of committed effective dose and lifetime cancer risk due to the ingestion of infant milk. Applied Radiation and Isotopes, 190, 110468. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apradiso.2022.110468
By citing this research, you are not only supporting my work, but also — and more importantly — as academic funding and opportunities are often based on citation metrics, you are helping to advance and bring visibility to the fields of radioecology and environmental radiation. Thank you for your support!
Figure - The IRBRF icon
Symbolism and meaning: the icon depicts a slice of passion fruit cut in half, its yellow pulp filled with seeds. The passion fruit was chosen as a symbol due to its importance in the development of the IRBRF, representing the fruit’s flour that was analyzed in the index’s primary study. The choice of the passion fruit was primarily motivated by its color. Yellow is often used as a visual symbol for ionizing radiation, and this chromatic association creates a connection between the food and the focus of the index’s analysis. Over the pulp and seeds, white contour lines follow a radial pattern, as if mapping the internal distribution of nutrients/energy. At the center, an intense glow simulates radiation or a point of high energy concentration, as if the essence of the passion fruit were emanating light.
Figure - Graphical interface of the IRBRF software showing an example of a calculation for a food item in the category 'General Foods'
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