LONDON, June 15 (Xinhua) -- Families keeping Second World War wristwatches as mementos could be at "serious risk" of cancer because of the radiation they emit, the leading British daily newspaper, The Times, reported, quoting research.
Collectors or families storing wristwatches from the 1920s to 1960s which used radium-based paints to make their dials glow in the dark could be absorbing dangerous doses of radiation, the report said.
Scientists from the University of Northampton and Kingston University have carried out the first work to determine just how harmful radioluminescent paint is when kept in the home.
Radon exposure is the second leading cause of lung cancer deaths after smoking.
Scientists found a collection of 30 antique radium-dial watches gave rise to radon concentrations 134 times greater than the UK's recommended "safe" level when kept in a space the size of a typical box room.
Three of the watches in poor condition individually produced radon concentration, when kept in the same poorly ventilated room, well over the threshold where Public Health England would recommend treatment.
