Radon In Drinking Water: Everything You Should Know

Drinking water with radon is totally harmful to humans. We often neglect its presence and it may cause severe effects on our bodies. So, here you can read basic information about radon in drinking water and how to reduce it.

Is There Radon In Drinking Water?

You might be wondering what is radon. Even if it is present in our water, is there a problem with that? So let me simplify it and tell you. Radon is actually a naturally occurring material.

It is a radioactive cancer-causing gas. Radon can be found underground, mainly occurring in uranium ores and phosphate rocks. It is majorly found in the air as well as in water. However, in very small amounts it hinders the way of clean air and water through the soil.

Now I am sure a question must arise. How can a radioactive gas activity within the soil and that too underground? So let me make it clear that the breaking of uranium forms radon that penetrates into the house.

Not only your house, your building, and even your apartment. Through your houses, this radon can even pass into your water. Hence, causing a lot of diseases. While you use this water in your everyday routine like cooking.

This radon immerses into the air and further pollutes it. It is proved that inhaling radon can increase the chances of lung cancer in humans. Alongside it is also said that not everybody exposed to radon will be getting lung cancer. Such diseases only occur when there is long-term exposure to them. for example, people working at construction sides.

Is Drinking Water With Radon Is Safe?

So there is no such mark through which we can tell how much amount of radon is permitted for our body. The problem occurs when drinking radon water is not an issue but using radon water becomes one. When water is used for, showering, and other such household activities, it enters our home.

Hence, again causing an issue of inhaling it. Now I am sure that my stance is clear. Drinking radon water is not that harmful but breathing radon is.

Let us look at a list of places through which radon can easily enter our bodies.

• Construction areas
• Underground water, wells
• Cracks present in walls
• Beneath the basement

Radon concentration in the air is majorly caused by rocks that have a good amount of uranium in them. This rock is said to release radon in the waters. That is why the water in wells has a higher amount of radon as compared to lakes, rivers, etc.

Drinking water with radon can also cause problems among people. These problems could be irritation in the stomach. Exposure to harmful cells in the bloodstream. Mainly cases where drinking water radon causes problems are way less. Then inhaling it.

How To Know If Radon Is Present In Water?

Finding the amount of radon in water can be an issue. One always finds ways in which he or she can reduce their cancer risk up to some extent. To test if there is radon in water, one has to be really careful. This is gas so obviously, it cannot be seen and unfortunately cannot be smelled.

As it is an odourless, colourless, and tasteless gas. There are some tests in the market that you can purchase. These sets have some steps written on them. You can follow those steps with your water and check it. Further, you can send these results to a lab and wait for your final answer.

How Does It Affect Humans?

As explained earlier radon is cancerous and can be really harmful to your body. If you think that you have been exposed to radon for a long period of time or. When a large amount of radon enters our body it is known as radon poisoning. If you are having symptoms like cough, breathlessness, pain.

Wheezing, loss of appetite, infections like pneumonia. Then you should visit your doctor for a health check-up. Radon poisoning is symptomless, which worsens the case. Radon can be a huge monster to the people who are exposed to smoking.

When cigarette smoking and radon inhalation is mixed, it can increase the risk of lung cancer. This increase of risk can be calculated to be about 25 times more if compared to that with nonsmokers. Radon is said to be the second biggest cause of lung cancer after cigarette smoking.

Steps To Prevent

After reading the entire article you must be aware of how dangerous radon can be.

So here are some ways through which we can prevent radon to enter our indoor atmosphere.

1. Avoid the entry of radon from the basement into living areas.
2. Seal all floors and windows properly.
3. Improve the ventilation of your houses.
4. Seal all cracks present in your house or building.
5. Stop smoking and also discourage smoking as much as you can.
6. Try to reach for new techniques for radon resistance.
7. Soil suction
8. Cover the ground with a high-density plastic sheet.
9. Use room pressurization
10. Use private well water

Highest Measure Of Radon In Water?

So radon concentrations, as mentioned above are different everywhere. Somewhere it is a problem and some of the time, it is not. Outdoor radon can vary from 5Bq/m^3 to 15Bq/m^3. This is the kind of data that generally causes no harm.

Now, talking about indoors, the numbers are frightening. Indoor radon accounts for 10Bq/m^3 to 10000Bq/m^3. WHO has established its radon concentration level to 100Bq/m^3, this cannot exceed up to 300Bq/m^3.

How To Reduce It?

There are a lot of ways through which we can reduce or remove radon from our water. Such ways have been proven to be beneficial in order to remove radon.

The first method could be to spray water or mix it with air and vent the air from the water. The second treatment could be to filter your water.

Now filtering has also a lot of methods and ways. Here we are talking about the GAC method i.e. granular activated carbon. In this method, radon sticks to the carbon and leaves the water. This method requires a lot of attention and handling if it is used at a high radon level.

Final Talk

At last, I would like to conclude the article by saying that harmful gases can be around us at all times. Like before now who could have thought that the air inside our homes is more harmful than the air outside.

The water we are drinking is not safe. Although it comes from underground and is being filtered. So, as responsible citizens, we should be careful at all stages. As prevention is always better than cure.