High radon levels in homes could cause serious issues

By: 
Zach Clemens

sites/default/files/radon copy.jpg

     Organizations and health departments around the U.S. and Iowa are urging residents to check their homes for radon, a leading cause of lung cancer.
     Radon is a radioactive gas that is created from the natural breakdown of uranium in the soil. The only way to know if radon is in your home is to test for it, according to Jenna Willems, the Healthy Homes Program Coordinator from the Cerro Gordo County Health Department.
     “It can be in any home,” Willems said. “Radon is odorless, tasteless and colorless and there are no immediate symptoms.”
     According to the Environmental Protection Agency, elevated radon levels in a home are more common in Iowa than any other state in the nation. Every single county in Iowa averages levels of radon higher than the acceptable amount. Five out of seven homes in Iowa have elevated levels.
     According to the American Lung Association, radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer, and a smoker who lives with elevated levels of radon in their home are nine times more likely to develop lung cancer than non-smokers.
     Willems said that a lot of things could change the levels of radon in a home, like an open sump pump or cracks in the foundation. It does not matter if the home is older, or a new construction, and a well insulated home might actually be a detriment, as it will keep the radon inside the home.
     Currently, the Cerro Gordo County Health Department has a limited supply of free test kits, and regularly sells test kits for $6. The resident will have to collect the sample, then have the Health Department send the sample to a lab to be tested for radon.
     If a home has high levels of radon, the most common solution is to contact a radon mitigation specialist, who will determine the trouble spots and usually install a radon mitigation system to vent out the radon.
     It is important to understand the danger of radon, and to take the necessary steps to protect yourself and your family.

Hampton Chronicle

9 Second Street NW
Hampton, IA 50441
Phone: 641-456-2585
Fax: 1-800-340-0805
Email: news@midamericapub.com

Mid-America Publishing

This newspaper is part of the Mid-America Publishing Family. Please visit www.midampublishing.com for more information.