If you are going to have your granite tested for Radon....

15 years ago

Hi,

At the risk of prolonging this discussion, if you are going to spend the time and money to have your granite tested for Randon/Radiation, have your air and water tested as well. I would bet there are more carcinogens and toxins in the air and water.

Don't have your water tested by your water company but by an independent lab. And if you think you've avoided those toxins by drinking bottled water, there is some 12 syllable chemical that is in plastic bottles (water bottles and baby bottles), plastic wrap and take out containers that causes cancer.

The air is full of toxins. Being originally from New Jersey, I'm no stranger to air and water pollution (has anyone been on the Northern part of the NJ Turnpike?!!). But when I clean my air filters, I am amazed at the gunk that is in the air and that I'm breathing.

If you want to be health conscious and try to avoid anything that causes cancer, good luck. There is an issue on the dose of radiation from Mammograms and whether the radiation from the mammogram is more harmful then the cancer they are suppose to detect. Drinking soy milk is suppose to aid in the prevention of breast cancer. Yet, there is a chemical in most soy products that can lead to cancer (Carrageenan). I recently had a cat die from a type of cancer that is cause by the vaccinations given annually for FELV and Rabies.

Although I try to eat mostly vegetarian and organic, the recall on Spinach hit the organic as well as the conventional. The list of what I won't eat or drink is getting longer then things I do. I'm about to join the ranks of other germophobes like Howard Hughes, Michael Jackson and Howir Mandel (although I will still shake hands).

My point of all this is before you spend the money and panic over your granite, look at all the other things that cause cancer. I am not minimizing the risk of radon or the ugliness of cancer (I have spent way too much time at Sloan Kettering), but let's keep this in perspective.

I'm sure my spelling may be off in places and I can't say or spell all those 12 syllable names for chemicals, additives or preservatives that cause cancer, but here is what I reccomend:

Vassar College in partnership with the Center for Environmental Oncology of the University of Pittsburg Cancer Institute have produced a CD which is available for free (http://erbc.vassar.edu). It documents the Environmental Risks and Breast Cancer (I know Breast Cancer is only 1 type of cancer but most of the evidence suggests the potential for the development of other types of cancer as well). This CD includes scientific evidence addressing the potential risks of contraceptives, cosmetics, plastics, radiation, air and water pollutants, cleaning products, industrial chemicals, pesticides, and metals.

If you go thru this CD, you will find other hazardous materials in your home. Not all have had a New York Times article written about them. Although I'm not a big fan of anything that causes cancer, we need to keep this granite thing in perspective.

My 2 cents worth!

Karen

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Comments (14)

hokie98
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Thanks Karen - I agree with you 100%. I feel like practically everything I read lately is telling me about something else I need to avoid. I try my best to lead a healthy lifestyle - I don't smoke, try to avoid processed foods, eat lots of antioxidants, exercise, cut out parabens as much as possible, and have tried to eliminate alot of chemicals out of our home. I sort of believe the simpler, the better. But I swear, if it's not one thing, it's another. Literally, I read about several new hazards every week (maybe I need a vacation from the internet). So I really just don't know anymore...the internet is a brilliant tool, but I'm afraid I'm maxing out on info, which is causing me anxiety, which of course may be worse for my health than the radon/radiation at this point! I do believe knowledge is power, but I'm also afraid these days we find out too much information before something can be adequately researched. As my husband reminds me, there is a 24 hour, 7 day a week news cycle that needs to be filled constantly. But thanks again for keeping this in perspective. I'm trying to get it through my hard-headed skull that there is only so much I can do...there is risk with everything, and all I can do is try to do what feels right for me and my family. If I keep looking for things that will kill us, I'll surely die an early death after suffering anxiety, high blood pressure, and stress, which will mean I missed out on the opportunity to live life to the fullest.

Thanks Karen for throwing this out there.
sue_ct
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
AAAAAAHHHHHHH, a place where sanity reigns! :) I love you guys.

Sue
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ma-bookreader
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
As a fellow garden state resident (where i swear the Raritan River glows in the dark at night!), I have got to agree with you about keeping this all in perspective.
karenfromknoxville
Original Author
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Hi,

Thanks for your kind words on maintaining perspective. I guess being from Jersey you're used to pollution, the notion of something causing cancer, and we just don't scare easily. As Sue ct said in another thread, radon is not a new thing, it's been around for a while. When I sold my condo in NJ back in 1993, passing the radon test was a major deal (and I didn't even have granite then!).

When I go into the kitchen now and look at my granite, I think is it emitting Radon? But then I look at my refrigerator and think I know that has more items in it that are linked to cancer! By far my refigerator is the bigger culprit and I'm afraid to even start reading the labels on everything that's in the pantry or under my sink!

As hokie98 mentioned, I think we are on information overload! And too much will make us crazy trying to sort thru the facts and do the right thing. Time to chill and relax a bit! Is it too early for a glass of wine? I think dark chocolate is good for you now and almost a health food!

Karen
kevin_ii
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Save your money and get granite in your bathrooms - it beats the heck out of cultured marble!

It's the methane gas in the batroom every morning that scares me.
bill_vincent
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Got a match? :-)
nancylouise5me
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
LOL! You guys are killing me! Thanks for the chuckle! NancyLouise
kevin_ii
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Oh bill you wouldn't :)
bill_vincent
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
I know Al thinks I fry his a$$!! :-)

Karen makes a good point, though. This is just the panic du jour. Before, it was whole milk. Then without whole milk, we're lacking in vitamin D and calcium. Then it's the sun. If we're out in the sun too long, we can come down with melanoma. But if we stay out of the sun, then we have to worry about SAD. What's another good one? Oh yeah-- COFFEE!! it's no good-- the caffeine is addictive. Wait a minute-- it IS good for you!! Red wine. CHOCOLATE!! Even POT had no redeeming medicinal value. Now, it's the cureall for those in pain from glaucoma and chemo, and the list is growing. The same thing happened a few years ago, only then it was a VALID concern, and concern for it thankfully continues even today, and that's mold remediation. I just want to try and get past this with the most REAL education about the problem, and the least amount of injury to the industry.

There IS a solution, though. If you want to live longer, it's very simple. Don't eat or breathe!! You'll live forever! :-)
karenfromknoxville
Original Author
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Hi,

I think if we wait a few months, they'll come out with some health benefit to having granite. I think it was mentioned on another thread that possibly laying on granite naked relieves hot flashes. Maybe we need to call the New York Times about that?

Karen
pattiem93
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
"I think it was mentioned on another thread that possibly laying on granite naked relieves hot flashes."

Hmmmm.... I didn't think of that when I was trying to convince my hubby we HAD to have an 8 foot island-that would have saved me alot of begging.
blondelle
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Look at all the women that are now going to use this as an excuse not to use their kitchens to cook and have their husbands take them out to eat all the time...LOL!
bill_vincent
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
But still need the granite to beat the hot flashes! What a racket!! :-)
morton5
15 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
I am of average height, and when I stand at the counter, it is pretty much right at the level of my reproductive organs or where a developing baby would be. I do a lot of standing by the counter-- maybe 2-3 hours per day. If I had granite, you bet I would get it tested. But I have any house I'm buying tested for radon.

If you are going to have your granite tested for Radon....

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hokie98

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