When the International Olympic Committee announced Beijing as the site of the 2008 summer Olympic games, more than a few eyebrows were raised. China had earned a reputation for its excessive air pollution, and athletes openly voiced concerns that the breathing conditions could hamper their performances. For this reason, the Chinese government embarked on a campaign to reduce the overall level of air contamination. In a study soon to be published in Environmental Health Perspectives, researchers assessed the level of 17 carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and estimated how the air pollution reduction would affect the overall lifetime inhalation of the contaminants. They concluded that if the current air pollution control measures were maintained, there would be a 46% reduction in estimated cancer risk from inhaled carcinogens.
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