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Radon is a cancer-causing, radioactive gas. When we breathe air containing the gas, we can get lung cancer. In fact, we can’t see radon. We can’t smell or taste it, but it may very well be a problem in our home. It is estimated to cause many thousands of deaths each year.

In the United States today, radon has now been declared the second leading cause of lung cancer. If we smoke and our home has high radon levels, our 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 we breathe. Radon can get into any type of building, homes, offices, and schools and build up to high levels. But we and our family are most likely to get our greatest exposure in our home because that is where we spend most of our time.

Testing is the only way to know if we and our 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 our 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.

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 we’ve tested the air in our home and found a radon problem, and our water comes from a well, contact a lab certified to measure radiation in water to have our water tested. If we’re on a public water supply and are concerned that radon may be entering our home through the water, call our public water works.

Since there is no known safe level of radon, there can always be some risk. 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 we 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.

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