Human cells usually contain a single set of 46 chromosomes. While polyploidy occurs frequently in plants, in humans it is relatively rare. The controversy over food irradiation and polyploidy began in the mid-1970s when studies on animals and humans showed increased polyploidy after consumption of irradiated wheat. In all studies, however, questions were raised about the true relationship between polyploidy and irradiated food since polyploidy did not increase as expected when doses of radiation applied to wheat were increased. In addition, the link between polyploidy and irradiation was also questions since chromosomal breaks and deletions were also observed to occur in association with other dietary parameters like protein deficiency and overall malnourishment.
Consumers wanting to avoid all irradiated foods can do so by eating organically certified products.
At present, irradiation is still prohibited on the use of all foods certified as organic. I have always been told to have fresh fruit for snacks, but someone recently told me that fruits have lots of toxins. Non-organically grown infant juices typically contain lead at the ppb level, and fruits like grapes and strawberries often have ppb levels of the pesticides folpet and captan. Skins of fruits generally contain higher levels of toxins than the inner pulp and in the case of some fruits like oranges, dyes derived from coal tar may be injected for cosmetic reasons. Many fruits are aseptically packaged in containers that include aluminum foil liners.