Resources You Can Use: Radon Action Month

Posted by Sarah Levin-Lederer on January 13th, 2023 Posted in: Blog
Tags: environmental health, resources

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January is National Radon Action Month.

As we got to know Nancy Holmquist from Cary (ME) Medical Center during Focused Outreach last year, we learned more about projects and programs Cary has implemented around radon education and mitigation.

But what is radon? What are radon’s health effects? And what are the prevention and mitigation options?

What is radon?

Radon is an odorless, colorless inert gas that naturally occurs in trace amounts in the atmosphere. Outdoors, it rapidly disperses, but inside homes, schools and workplaces radon can become trapped after entering through holes and cracks in the foundation.

Learn more:

• What is radon gas? Is it dangerous? From the EPA
• Data and Information about Regional Radon Programs
• Your Environment. Your Health: Radon from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)

How does radon affect health?

Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the US.

Learn more:

• Radon Health Topics Page from MedlinePlus
• Radon and Your Health from the CDC
• Radon and Cancer from the National Cancer Institute

What can you do?

• The National Radon Action Plan-A Strategy for Saving Lives
• Radon Resources for Home Buyers and Sellers from the EPA
• Find a Radon Test Kit and Mitigation Professional

Información acerca del radón en español

Enero es el Mes Nacional de Acción contra el Radón

• Temas de salud: Radón-MedlinePlus en español
• Publicaciones sobre calidad del aire interior-EPA
• ¿Quién puede hacer la prueba para detectar el radón en su hogar y solucionar el problema del mismo?-EPA