Beijing pollution risky for endurance athletes By Nick Mulvenney BEIJING (Reuters) - Endurance events at the Beijing Olympics could pose a health risk if they are staged on heavily polluted days, the International Olympic Committee said on Wednesday, although it was prepared to reschedule such events. Hein Verbruggen, chairman of the IOC coordination commission, said there was a small chance of athletes suffering some damage to their health if they took part in events lasting longer than an hour, such as the marathon and cycling road races.

Firms that renovate or repair housing, childcare facilities or schools will have to follow new rules to protect children from exposure to lead. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is publishing stricter regulations for builders, plumbers, painters and electricians working on buildings constructed before 1978. Under the rules, workers must follow better safety standards to reduce potential exposure to dangerous levels of lead-based paint.

When parents think about their children's exposure to environmental risks, they might think of lead, pesticides or grass pollens. In fact, the greatest environmental exposure for most children is television. They spend more time watching television than in any other wakeful activity, and it affects their health and well-being in significant ways. For too long parents and even pediatricians have asked: "Is television good or bad?" Television is inherently neither; it's time to move beyond such black or white thinking.

Chopped pig pancreas may not sound appetizing. But most cystic fibrosis patients eat a refined version of it each breakfast, lunch and dinner

Two more persons have died of bird flu in Indonesia, bringing the death toll in the country worst hit by the virus to 107, said the Health Ministry on Monday.