THE HIDDEN DANGER OF MANTLE LAMPS

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Next, we gathered up several lanterns that used the suspect mantles and performed an informal experiment to check for radioactivity. Admittedly, our research was by no means controlled (for instance, one of the staffers borrowed a lantern for a weekend camping expedition during the rest, and thereby inadvertently provided some information on an in-use mantle) . none of us is trained in radiation detection . . . and our facilities are not equipped to measure—or control—the temperature at which each lantern burns.

However, despite such limitations, we were able to obtain the results Walt Wagner told us we would: The lantern mantles are radioactive . . . and this radioactivity persists because the thorium is producing a radioactive chain of decay products. Thus, the figures in the chart on the preceding page are useful for comparing the radioactivity of several types of mantles employed in a variety of lanterns.

Perhaps the main point of MOM'S little test, though, was that it awakened us to the prevalence of sources of low-level radiation. It's only recently that medical journals and other health forums have started discussing a possible link between lower-than-previously-assumed-dangerous levels of radiation and cancer. The big question, of course, is what dosage of low-level radiation places a human being at risk. This may never be adequately answered (and there may well be no "safe" dosage).

When we were talking to Dan Sythe at The Farm and mentioned the results of our mantle experiment, he pointed out that some people wear or carry watches that emit more radiation than a lantern mantle . . . many old timepieces and clocks were painted with radium to illuminate the dials (other substances are used today). Household radiation sources also include smoke detectors, old kitchen timers, and static eliminators (devices used to reduce static on film and records).

Still another source is old pottery or crockery that's decorated with red or orange glaze (the coloring can contain uranium). The orange plate pictured on a previous page—shown registering 0.5 milliroentgens (mR) per hour of radiation—belongs to a staff member . . . it's among a set of 1940's-vintage Fiesta ware that she was given by her grandmother.

And while we were exploring sources of radiation, we recalled recent warnings concerning the health risk of radon . . . a radioactive gas that's naturally present in nearly all rocks and soil, as well as in building materials such as brick or concrete. It appears that radon is more concentrated in airtight, energy-efficient structures than in others for at least two reasons: These buildings frequently rely on rock, brick, or concrete for heat sinks . . . and—because care is taken to minimize hear leakage—the air in such houses isn't changed very often. Therefore, more radon is produced and allowed to accumulate in the efficient dwellings.

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