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Indoor time.
Children often spend much of their time indoors—whether at home, in classrooms, or
in afterschool care. Unfortunately, those
same indoor environments can trap radon, particularly in basements and ground-floor rooms.
The Long-Term Risk
Radon exposure doesn’t cause immediate symptoms. Instead, its effects accumulate silently, increasing the chance of lung cancer years or even decades later. When exposure starts in childhood, the risk is especially concerning: children have more years ahead
of them for the damage to show up as cancer
in adulthood.
Where Radon Lurks
Schools, childcare centers, and homes with basements are common hotspots for radon buildup. Because radon is colorless, odorless, and tasteless, children can be exposed for years without anyone knowing—unless the building is tested.
The Numbers Behind the Risk
So what happens if a child spends 12 years
in a school with elevated radon levels?
There’s no simple equation that predicts exactly who will develop lung cancer, but science does give us clear indicators:
EPA estimates show that a lifetime exposure (70 years) to radon at the action level of 4 pCi/L could cause 7 out of 1,000 nonsmokers and 62 out of 1,000 smokers to develop lung cancer.
At 20 pCi/L, the risk jumps to 36 per 1,000 nonsmokers and 260 per 1,000 smokers.
While 12 years is not a lifetime, it’s still a significant cumulative dose. And because children breathe faster and have longer lives ahead, their relative risk is considered higher than adults exposed for the same span.
Putting It Into Perspective
If radon levels in a school hovered around 4 pCi/L, children exposed for 12 years would carry a measurably higher lifetime cancer risk than their peers in radon-safe schools.
If levels were 10–20+ pCi/L, the added lifetime risk could be several times higher.
For lifelong nonsmokers, the danger is lower but still real. For children who later smoke, radon exposure multiplies their odds of lung cancer dramatically.
The Bottom Line
We cannot tell a parent or teacher the exact percentage chance that any single child will develop lung cancer from 12 years of school radon exposure. But we can say this with certainty: those years matter. Daily exposure to a proven human carcinogen during a critical stage of growth substantially increases long-term risk.
The solution is simple and powerful: test schools and homes for radon, and fix any building above the action level of 4 pCi/L. By reducing exposure early, we can prevent future cases of lung cancer before they ever begin.
In short: A Group 1 radon situation means children are being exposed to a known carcinogen at the very time their bodies are most vulnerable. Testing and mitigation are not optional—they are urgent acts of prevention.
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