This has put some people off granite countertops.
Marble have radon.
Radon is a colorless and odorless toxic gas linked to lung cancer.
Seven days after the report the doctors show.
Marble is dominantly calcium carbonate and is very depleted in uranium.
To reduce the radon risk you should first test the air in your home to determine the radon level.
For some objective information on the subject check the latest recommendations from the u s.
Over years of exposure radon can cause cancer the primary health concern with this gas.
Environmental protection agency epa and the american association of radon scientists and technologists aarst.
However some articles have circulated that claim granite is a source of harmful radiation specifically radon.
There are many do it yourself radon test kits available through retail outlets and on line starting at about 25.
If you have granite countertops and want to test them for radon place a short term home radon test kit near the granite and another kit in the basement or lowest usable level of the home.
The doctors show admits it erred in granite radon segment.
However tests on other types of granite have been negative for radon.
When materials such as granite are mined from the earth they naturally contain these radioactive elements and may occasionally emit radon gas.
November 2013 thanks to quick and forceful action by the marble institute of america and its legal team the doctor s show has retracted a show segment in which it reported that living in a home with granite countertops could be as bad as smoking a half package of cigarettes a day.
The uranium breaks down on exposure to air forming radon gas.
Granites from india and egypt have very low emanation rates and are by far the best in the world in this regard.
Here is a link for several studies from all over the world.
Radon can be found in soil rock air and even water.
Here is the truth about granite countertops and radiation.
Radiation and radon are generally lower in marbles but both marble and granite has been studied for many years on these issues.
You would not expect to have radon produced from exposure of marble to air.
While natural rocks such as granite may emit radiation and radon gas the levels attributable to such sources are not typically high.