ABSTRACT
Acceptable concentrations can be calculated for a general population or worker risk group on the basis of acceptable individual excess risk or acceptable number of excess cases. There is no national consensus on values for acceptable individual excess risk or an acceptable number of excess cases. Usually the acceptable individual excess risk is well below the range of experimentally observed responses. It is important to confirm whether or not the difference is statistically significant in order to determine if the dose is a no-effect or lowest effective dose. Many individuals and groups need a usable treatment of the methodology required to assess the human health risks caused by toxicant exposure. This need is shared by industrial hygienists, environmental, occupational and public health professionals, toxicologists, epidemiologists, labor unions, attorneys, regulatory officials, and manufacturers and users of chemicals. Sophisticated computer programs are not required. All the computations can be carried out with a pocked calculator.
