Health Dangers Of Asbestos

Health Dangers Of Asbestos by Jennefer Poultson

Mesothelioma and asbestosis are the long term result of prior exposure to asbestos. You have undoubtedly heard of asbestos, and are probably aware of its dangers. But many people are not aware as to exactly what it is and where it can still be found in the environment in which we live.

Asbestos is a type of mineral fiber that used to be utilized in many products for the purpose of making them more resistant to the extremes of heat and cold. For many years asbestos was used widely by the building industry, before it was known that this material releases particles which produce mesothelioma - an aggressive form of lung cancer - when they are inhaled. Asbestos is no longer used, for this reason.

There is also active controversy that some sectors of the building industry continued to exposure their workers to asbestos, with the attendant risks of asbestosis and mesothelioma long after the building industry was in possession of compelling evidence of the dangers of asbestos use.

One issue many people may not realise is that asbestos use was not limited to commercial buildings - it was commonly used in the building of homes, and yours could be one of them. The fibers of asbestos are in some roofs and tiles built up with asbestos cement. They also can be found in paintings and substances to cover holes in walls or ceilings. Some old hot water pipes might be covered with asbestos too. Ask a professional to take a look to your house in order to ascertain if you and your family are in risk.

Certainly, if you are considering demolishing any walls, or renovating or remodelling your home, it is imperative that you have an asbestos expert determine whether or not there is asbestos present in your home. Indeed, it is illegal to demolish or otherwise interfere with any structure containing with asbestos. It is necessary to have the asbestos professionally removed by people who know exactly what precautions to take to remove asbestos containing structures, and how to safely dispose of the asbestos so as not to cause any inadvertent exposure to asbestos, which could well cause the development of mesothelioma some years later.


Jennefer Poultson writes on health implications of exposure to asbestos. For more information on mesosthelioma - the primary cancer caused by exposure to asbestos - Click Here

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ASBESTOS

What is asbestos?

Asbestos is a mineral and it is mined in much the same way as are other minerals, such as iron, lead, and copper. Most asbestos is composed of silicon, oxygen, hydrogen, and various metal cations (positively charged metal ions).

Types of Asbestos:
There are varieties of asbestos. The three most common types are crocidolite, chrysotile, and amosite. The chrysotile fibers are pliable and cylindrical, and generaly arranged in bundles. The amosite and crocidolite fibers are more like tiny sharp needles.

The very first commercial asbestos mine was a chrysotile mine and opened in Quebec, Canada, in the 1870's. Later, crocidolite asbestos was first mined in South Africa during the 1980's. Amosite asbestos also comes from Africa and was first mined in 1916. Unlike most minerals, which will turn into dust particles when crushed, the asbestos breaks up into fine fibers that are too small to be seen by the human eye. In many cases individual fibers are mixed with a material that binds them together and this produces an asbestos containing material (ACM).

Asbestos and mesothelioma?

The chrysotile asbestos is the primary cause of malignant pleural mesothelioma. The 3 most common forms of asbestos are amosite, chrysotile, and crocidolite. The chrysotile asbestos or white asbestos accounts for approximately 95% of the asbestos material that is used in US production of asbestos products and is the only known member of the serpentine group of minerals.

Manufacturers and builders liked Asbestos for a variety of reasons. Asbestos is strong yet flexible, and it will not burn. Asbestos conducts electricity poorly, but insulates effectively and also resists corrosion. Asbestos may have been so widely used because few other available materials combine the same qualities in one form.

Asbestos and other products:

According to a study, there is an estimation of 3,000 different types of commercial products contained some form of asbestos. The total amount of asbestos in each product was from as little as one percent to as much as 100 percent. Older plastics, paper products, brake linings, floor tiles and textile products often contain asbestos, as do many heavy manufacturing products such as sealants, cement pipe, cement sheets, and insulation. However, there is a Ban currently on Asbestos and Phaseout Rule now prohibits the manufacture, processing, and even importation of most asbestos products.

Origin of Human contaction and use of Asbestos:

Asbestos was first used in the USA in the early 1900's, to insulate steam locomotive engines. But until the early 1940's, asbestos was not used very extensively. After World War II and for the next thirty years, the people who constructed and renovated schools and other public buildings used asbestos and asbestos -containing materials (ACM) extensively. ACM was used primarily to soundproof, fireproof, insulate, and decorate. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has estimated that there are many asbestos containing materials in most of our nation's approximately 107,000 primary and secondary schools and 733,000 commercialand public buildings.

People may esily inhale them after the asbestos fibers or dust is in the air. Because the asbestos fibers are so small and light, they can float in the air for a long time. The people whose work may bring them into contact with asbestos, like workers who renovate old buildings that have asbestos in them for example, may inhale fibers that are in the air: This is known as occupational exposure. The workers' families may also inhale asbestos fibers released by clothes that have been in contact with ACM: this is known as paraoccupational exposure. Any people who live or work near asbestos-related operations may inhale the asbestos fibers that have been released into the air by the operations and this is called neighborhood exposure. The total amount of asbestos a worker is exposed to will vary according to the followings:
The concentration of asbestos fibers in the air
Duration of asbestos exposure
The worker's breathing rate (workers doing manual labor breathe faster)
Weather conditions
The protective devices the worker wears
Estimates say that between 1940 and 1980, 27 million Americans had significant occupational exposure to asbestos. People may also ingest asbestos if they eat in areas where there are asbestos fibers in the air.

We should also note that any damaged ACM is more likely to release fibers into the air than non-damaged ACM. A 1984 survey said the EPA found that approximately 66 percent of those old buildings that contained asbestos also contained damaged ACM. If an ACM can be crumbled by hand pressure or a condition known as "friable"- it is much more likely to release fibers than if it is "non-friable." The fluffy, spray-applied asbestos fireproofing material seen is generally considered "friable." There are some materials that are considered "non-friable," such as vinyl-asbestos floor tile, that can also release fibers when sanded, sawed, or otherwise aggressively disturbed. And materials such as asbestos cement pipe can release asbestos fibers if broken or crushed when buildings are demolished, renovated, or repaired. Any ACM which is in a heavy traffic area, and which is therefore often disturbed, is more likely to release asbestos fibers than ACM in a relatively undisturbed area.

Identifying asbestos and asbestos products?

While it can be possible to consider that a building material or product is/or contains asbestos by looking at it, the actual determinations can only be made by valid instrumental analysis. Before a product has been tested, it is wise to assume that the product does contains asbestos, unless the label, or the manufacturer of the product verifies that it does not.

The EPA requires that the asbestos content of any suspect materials be determined by collecting bulk samples and analyzing them with polarized light microscopy (PLM). This PLM technique determines both the percent and type of asbestos in the bulk material. The EPA Regional Offices can provide information about labs that test for asbestos in materials.

While some people that are exposed to asbestos develop asbestos-related health problems; some people do not. Once it has been inhaled, the asbestos fibers can easily penetrate body tissues. The fibers may be deposited and retained in the airways and lung tissue. And because the asbestos fibers remain in the body, each exposure to asbestos increases the likelihood of developing an asbestos-related disease. Asbestos diseases may not appear until many years after the exposure. Currently we are seeing the results of exposure among many asbestos workers during World War II.

Getting a medical examination that includes a medical history, breathing capacity test, and chest x-ray may detect problems early. The scientists have not been able to determine a "safe" or threshold level for exposure to airborne asbestos. Ingesting asbestos may also be harmful, but the consequences of this type of exposure have not been clearly documented. Neither have the effects of skin exposure to asbestos been well documented. It seems people who touch asbestos may get a skin rash similar to the rash caused by fiberglass.

Diseases that are associated with exposure to asbestos?

Asbestosis

This is causd by asbestos exposure, asbestosis is a serious, chronic, non-cancerous respiratory disease. The inhaled asbestos fibers aggravate lung tissues, which causes them to scar. The symptoms of asbestosis include shortness of breath and a dry crackling sound during inhaling and in its advanced stages, the disease may cause cardiac failure.

At this time there is no effective treatment for asbestosis and the disease is usually disabling or fatal. The actual risk of asbestosis is minimal for those who do not work with asbestos and the disease is rarely caused by any neighborhood or family exposure. For those who renovate or demolish buildings that contain asbestos, they may be at elevated risk depending on the nature of the exposure and any precautions taken.

Lung Cancer

The largest number of deaths related to asbestos exposure is from lung cancer. Incidence of lung cancers in workers who are directly involved in the mining, milling, manufacturing, and use of asbestos and its products is much greater than in the general population. Among the most common symptoms of lung cancer are coughing and a change in breathing. Other lung cancer symptoms include shortness of breath, persistent chest pains, hoarseness, and anemia.

Those who have been exposed to asbestos fibers and are also exposed to some other carcinogens such as tobacco smoke have a much greater risk of developing a lung cancer than those who have only been exposed to asbestos. One medical study found that asbestos workers who smoke are about 90 times more likely to develop lung cancer than people who neither smoke nor have been exposed to asbestos.

Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma is a rare type of lung cancer which generally occurs in the thin membrane lining of the lungs, chest, abdomen, and sometimes the heart. Roughly 3,000 new cases are diagnosed each year in the US. Almost all cases of mesothelioma are linked with past asbestos exposure. About two percent of all miners and textile workers who work with asbestos, and 10 percent of all workers who were involved in the manufacture of asbestos-containing gas masks are diagnosed with mesothelioma.

Those people who work in asbestos mills, asbestos mines, factories, and shipyards that use asbestos, as well as those who manufacture and install asbestos insulation, have an greater risk of mesothelioma. And so do people who live with asbestos workers, near asbestos mining areas, near asbestos product factories, or near shipyards where use of asbestos has produced large quantities of airborne asbestos fibers.

The younger people are when they inhale asbestos, the more likely they are to develop mesothelioma. This is why huge efforts are being made to prevent school children from being exposed and to get asbestos out of school buildings.

Asbestos and Other Cancers

All evidence suggests that cancers in the esophagus, stomach, colon, larynx, oral cavity, and kidney may be caused by ingesting asbestos. If you would like more information on asbestos-related cancers, contact your local chapter of the American Cancer Society.

There are basic facts we need to know about asbestos. they are:
1. While asbestos is very hazardous, the human risk of asbestos disease depends upon the exposure.

2. Most asbestos levels in buildings and the levels school children and you and I face as building occupants does seem to be very low,which is based upon available data. As such, the health risk we face as building occupants also appears to be very low.

3. It seems removal is often not a school district's or other building owner's best course of action to reduce asbestos exposure. In fact, an improper removal can create a dangerous situation where none previously existed.

4. The EPA only requires asbestos removal in order to prevent significant public exposure to asbestos, such as during building renovation or demolition.

5. The EPA does recommend in-place management whenever asbestos has been discovered. and instead of any removal, a serious in-place management program will usually be enough to control fiber releases, particularly when the materials are not significantly damaged and are not likely to be disturbed.