Is an infrared thermometer harmful?
The State Council held a press conference on the joint prevention and control mechanism of the novel coronavirus pneumonia epidemic. In response to the question of whether the infrared thermometer is harmful to human body, Feng Luzhao, a researcher from the China Center for Disease Control and Prevention, responded that the working principle of the infrared thermometer is to focus the infrared ray heat radiation of human body on the detector, which will convert the radiation power into electrical signals. After the environmental temperature is compensated, Display in units of temperature.
So, infrared thermometers do not emit infrared radiation to the human body, but rather receive infrared thermal radiation from the human body, so there is no harm to the eyes and body, "Feng Zhaolu said.
Qi Haiyan, Deputy Chief Physician of the Ophthalmology Department at Shunyi Women's and Children's Hospital of Beijing Children's Hospital, introduced that if the infrared intensity is high, it can cause certain irritation and damage to the eyes, and in severe cases, it can cause cataracts, retinal damage, and even blindness. The eyes have a certain absorption effect on infrared rays with wavelengths less than 1.5 microns. If directly irradiated, the liquid in the eyes can react by absorbing shortwave infrared rays, leading to eye diseases. However, infrared thermometers on the market do not emit infrared light. The red light emitted is for convenience in positioning, and its working principle is to measure the infrared wavelength in the heat emitted by the human body. Qi Haiyan further explained that the infrared wavelength emitted by the human body at 36 ℃ -37 ℃ is 9-13 microns, which is the self emitted wavelength of the organism. The higher the temperature of the object, the shorter the emitted wavelength. For example, when the temperature of the object reaches 300 ℃, it is emitted The infrared wavelength of the human body is 6.8 microns, and the highest body temperature is just over 40 ℃. At this time, the emitted infrared wavelength is greater than 6.8 microns, far higher than the wavelength range that the eyes can absorb (1.5 microns), so the human body is safe to self emit far infrared. There are two types of infrared thermometers: contact type and non-contact type. Since the main transmission routes of COVID-19 are respiratory droplets and close contact, the current ones are non-contact to avoid COVID-19 infection due to contact. A non-contact infrared thermometer will measure different parts, such as the forehead, neck, wrist, etc. The use of an infrared thermometer to measure the neck will not have any impact on the thyroid gland. Qi Haiyan believes that "measuring the wrist is the most convenient and fast method. During the epidemic, please cooperate in measuring body temperature and rest assured to use an infrared electronic thermometer
Is there radiation from the infrared thermometer
The principle of an infrared thermometer is that the heat of the human body is emitted into the environment through thermal radiation. The infrared thermometer of the human body detects the thermal radiation of the human body through built-in sensors, thereby achieving the purpose of measuring body temperature. The infrared thermal imaging body temperature rapid screening instrument utilizes infrared temperature measurement technology to quickly measure the surface temperature of the human body in a non-contact manner. It is an instrument that alerts when the measured temperature reaches or exceeds the preset warning temperature value.
So basically, the human infrared thermometer itself does not have much radiation.
