Radon
Radon does not smell, is not vissble and has no taste. The only way to detect it is to measure.
Radon follows the water from the well into the house. Showering, washing dishes, and laundering can disturb the water and release radon gas into the air you breathe. The Radon devolvs then from a water radon problem to become also an air radon problem. It is important to treat the water where it enters your home (point-of-entry device) so that all the water will be treated. Before meassuring the Radon in the air the amount of Radon in the water should be checked first. If the water is delievered from a muncipality waterworks there is no need to check the water
Radon is a colorless, tasteless, odorless, noble radioactive gas which is formed when the radioactive element radium decays. It occurs naturally and is produced by the decay of uranium in soil, rock, and water. The decay of radon produces many other short-lived nuclides known as radon daughters (radioactive metal atoms). When we inhale air containing radon the radon daughters stick in our respiratory system. When decaying the radon daugthers emits radiation which might damage the cells in the respiratory system and the lungs. This is the reason why high levels of radon gas in homes is considered a health hazard. The authorities can demand the landlord to reduce the amount of radon in the air to below 200 Bq/m3 (becquerel per cubic meter air). These levels differs, depending on what authorities in different countries have dicided.
Radon does not smell, is not vissble and has no taste. The only way to detect it is to measure. Depending on from where the Radon is coming and on the concentration ther are a number of meassures to be taken to lower it. Radon is the second most frequent cause of lung cancer, after cigarette smoking, causing 21,000 lung cancer deaths per year in the united States (Sweden 500) . The longer time you spend in a “radon house” and the highre concentraition you expoese yorself for, the higher the risk. For smokers the risk is partticularly high.