Colourless. Odourless. Tasteless. Radon is a natural gas, but can be deadly in enclosed spaces, such as a basement.
A recent Health Canada survey found that Manitoba has the second-highest percentage at 23 per cent of homes in the country with radon concentrations over the suggested guideline of 200 becquerels, which are units used to measure radioactivity.
Only New Brunswick had higher levels.
Pam Warkentin is a certified radon service provider.
She said all homeowners should be checking their radon levels.
According to the World Health Organization, your risk of lung cancer increases by 16 per cent with every hundred becquerels of radon. Radon is the second-leading cause of lung cancer, killing almost three thousand Canadians each year.
"Radon is essentially a bunch of radioactive particles and when they are in your house, you breathe them in and when you breathe them into your lungs, they hit your lung tissue. That makes you more susceptible to lung cancer down the road. It's radioactive gas,” said Erin Crawford from the Canadian Cancer Society.
Warkentin said you should test radon levels in your home every two years, even after installing any system that reduces radon levels. There are short-term tests, of two to seven days, but Health Canada recommends using the long-term test, which tracks radon levels for three months. The kits cost about $50 from most hardware stores.
- with a report from Rahim Ladhani
