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Reference.org
Reference dose
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<p>A reference dose is the <a href="/facts/United_States_Environmental_Protection_Agency/ghI985SI">United States Environmental Protection Agency</a>'s maximum acceptable oral <a href="/facts/Dose_(biochemistry)/Gez72mSn">dose</a> of a <a href="/facts/Toxic/qa96rs60">toxic</a> substance, "below which no adverse noncancer health effects should result from a lifetime of exposure". Reference doses have been most commonly determined for <a href="/facts/Pesticide/Uhf4KnwJ">pesticides</a>. The EPA defines an oral reference dose (abbreviated RfD) as: </p> <p>[A]n estimate, with uncertainty spanning perhaps an <a href="/facts/Order_of_magnitude/cWzRP2dM">order of magnitude</a>, of a daily oral exposure to the human population (including sensitive subgroups) that is likely to be without an appreciable risk of deleterious effects during a lifetime.</p>