What is Radon?

Radon is an invisible, odorless, tasteless, cancer-causing inert gas created by the natural radioactive breakdown of uranium and radium in soil, rock and water. When radon is inhaled, alpha decay particles get attached to our lungs where they can cause damage and eventually, cause cancer. The World Health Organization (WHO), the National Academy of Sciences, the US Department of Health and Human Services, as well as Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have all classified radon as a class A carcinogen (tobacco products are in the same class as radon). Carcinogens are described as a substance that can cause cancer in living tissue (including humans and pets) with prolonged exposure. Radon is the #2 cause of lung cancer, only behind smoking. 

Radon Facts

• The United States Surgeon General, the American Lung Association, and the Environmental Protection Agency recommend that people avoid long-term radon exposure at or above 4 pCi/L
• The average indoor radon level in the U.S. is around 1.3 pCi/L
• Estimated to cause 20,000 radon-induced lung cancer deaths per year in the U.S.
• The risk of lung cancer from radon gas is 10-15 times greater in people who smoke cigarettes

Radon in Colorado

• The average indoor radon level in Colorado is 6.4 pCi/L
• The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment found that approximately 50% of homes in Colorado have higher radon levels than the EPA's recommended action level of 4 pCi/L
• Living in a home with average radon levels ins Colorado for one year is like having more than 200 chest x-rays per year
• Approximately 500 people die in Colorado annually from radon-induced lung cancer