Radon
is a cancer-causing, radioactive gas. Radon is a
naturally occurring radioactive gas released in
rock, soil, and water from the natural decay of
uranium. While levels in outdoor air pose a relatively
low threat to human health, radon can accumulate
to dangerous levels inside buildings. You can't
see, smell, or taste it, but an elevated radon level
in your home may be affecting the health of your
family. Exposure to radon is the second leading
cause of lung cancer in the United States and the
number one cause among non-smokers. The U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency estimates that radon causes more
than 20,000 lung cancer deaths in the country each
year. Only smoking causes more lung cancer deaths.
If you smoke and your home has radon, your risk
of lung cancer may be higher.
Radon
is found all over the United States. Radon has been
found in elevated levels in homes in every state.
No area of the country is free from risk. Indeed,
two homes right next to each other can have vastly
different radon levels. Just because your neighbor's
house does not have an elevated level of radon does
not mean that your house will have a low radon level.
The only way to know if your home's radon level
is under the EPA action
level of 4 picoCuries per liter of air is to test.
You
should test for radon. The U.S. Surgeon General
recommends that all homes in the U.S. be tested
for radon. If your house has a radon problem, you
can take steps to fix it to protect yourself and
your family.
Helix
Environmental, Inc. has been performing radon testing
since 1988. We use state of the art calibrated radon
monitors that provides written results within hours,
instead of days or weeks using other do-it-yourself
methods. To eliminate any potential conflict of interest,
Helix Environmental, Inc. only performs radon testing and
does not provide radon mitigation services.
Call us at (937) 226-0650 to schedule
a radon test.
EPA
radon information:
http://www.epa.gov/radon/