What you should know about RADON make Cancer!
The Radon Problem
Have you anytime heard about RADON make Cancer? You can't see
radon! And you can't smell or taste it, but it may very well be
a problem in your home. It is estimated to cause many thousands
of deaths each year. Radon is a cancer-causing, radioactive gas,
and when you breathe air containing the gas, you can get lung
cancer. In fact, radon has now been declared the second leading
cause of lung cancer in the United States today.
Only smoking causes more lung cancer deaths.
If you smoke and your home has high radon levels, your risk of
lung cancer is especially high.
Radon can be found all over the United States. It comes from the
natural breakdown of uranium in soil, rock and water and gets in
to the air you breathe. Radon can get into any type of building,
homes, offices, and schools and build up to high levels. But you
and your family are most likely to get your greatest exposure in
your home because that is where you spend most of your time.
Testing is the only way to know if you and your family are at
risk form radon. The Environmental Protection Agency along with
the Surgeon General recommends testing all homes below the third
floor for radon. It is inexpensive and easy to do the testing
and it only takes a few minutes of your time. Millions of
Americans have already had their homes tested. Radon from soil
gas is the main cause of radon problems although it can also
enter the home through well water. And in a small number of
homes, certain kinds of building materials may give off the gas,
too. However, the building materials rarely cause the problem by
themselves.
It have now been determined that nearly 1 out of every 15 homes
in the U.S. is estimated to have elevated radon levels. Elevated
levels of radon gas have been found in every state including
homes in your state.
The public has only recently started showing interest in this
deadly, cancer-causing gas. Contact your state radon office for
general information about radon in your area. While radon
problems may be more common in some areas, any home may have a
problem. Home buyers and renters are now asking about radon
levels before they buy or rent a home.
While radon in water is not a problem in homes served by most
public water supplies, it has been found in some well water. If
you've tested the air in your home and found a radon problem,
and your water comes from a well, contact a lab certified to
measure radiation in water to have your water tested. If you're
on a public water supply and are concerned that radon may be
entering your home through the water, call your public water
works.
Since there is no known safe level of radon, there can always be
some risk. But the risk can be reduced by lowering the radon
level in your home. A variety of methods may be used to reduce
radon in one's home. In some cases, sealing cracks in floors and
walls may help to reduce radon. In other cases, simple systems
using pipes and fans may be used to reduce the gas. Because
major renovations can change the level of radon in any home,
always test again after you have any work done. There are
reliable test kits available through the mail, in hardware
stores and certain other retail outlets.
Like other environmental pollutants, there is some uncertainty
about the magnitude of radon health risks. However, more is
known about the risks of radon than from most other
cancer-causing substances. This is because estimates of radon
risks are based on studies of cancer in humans such as
underground miners.
Health-Service-Online Admin Fritz Frei
mailto:info@cancer-info.info
http://www.cancer-info.info