China Warns Stone Floors May Cause Cancer

["Sandy Perle" <sandyfl@earthlink.net>]

Friday January 29 8:46 AM ET 

BEIJING (Reuters) - Wealthy Chinese consumers who furnish their 
homes with stylish granite floors and sculptures have a greater risk 
of contracting lung cancer from radon gas in the stone, the official 
Xinhua news agency said Friday.  

Xinhua quoted a survey as saying 27 percent of Chinese stone 
products failed radiation emission safety tests, with some 
decorative granite releasing five times the safe level of radiation.  

Radon, a radioactive gas which is naturally released by granite and 
other stones, can cause lung cancer if it is repeatedly inhaled in 
excessive amounts, the report said.  

Prosperous urban Chinese have outfitted their homes with fancy 
stonework, fittings and furniture in a spending spree the 
government wants to encourage to boost the economy.  

Sandy Perle
E-Mail: sandyfl@earthlink.net 
Personal Website: http://www.geocities.com/capecanaveral/1205

"The object of opening the mind, as of opening 
the mouth, is to close it again on something solid"
              - G. K. Chesterton -
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