The Greek called asbestos the miracle mineral because it was so soft and pliant as well as its ability to withstand heat. Little did they know about the dangers of asbestos poisoning. Asbestos is a naturally occurring silicate mineral with long, thin fibrous crystals that has been mined worldwide for over 100 years.
This fiber is found in flooring, pipes, brake pads and ceiling tiles among many other things. They estimate that in the US over 30 million tons of asbestos was used in over 3,000 products in the construction, automotive, electronic and textile industries, not to mention the towns where asbestos was mined.
Asbestos poisoning is the term used to signify any health problems resulting from exposure to asbestos. Once the connection was made between deteriorating health and asbestos exposure asbestos came under fire.
History of Asbestos
Asbestos became very popular with builders and manufacturers in the later part of the 19th century because of its many “miracle” attributes such as its resistance to heat, electrical and chemical damage, sound absorption and tensile strength.
The industrial revolution in the mid 1860’s created an enormous need for asbestos. Suddenly it was being used in multiple products such as insulation in the U.S. and Canada. The first commercial asbestos mine began in 1879 in the Appalachian foothills of Quebec. So by the mid 20th century the uses of asbestos included pipes, fireplace cement, fire, heat and acid resistant gaskets, insulation for pipes, fire retardant coatings, concrete, bricks, ceiling insulation, drywall joint compound, firewall drywall, flooring, roofing, lawn furniture and brick pads.
Shipbuilding was one of the biggest uses of asbestos products. Approximately 100,000 people in the United States have died, or will die, from this type of exposure. In the major shipbuilding center of Hampton Roads the occurrence of mesothelioma is more than seven times the national rate.
WW II veterans who served aboard ships or on the shipyards are another populace that were exposed quite extensively to asbestos because of the pipes that were wrapped or the boilers and engine covers and turbine parts. Because of this exposure the death rate by mesothelioma is quite a bit higher than the national average with 14 deaths for every thousand with many more dying from asbestos poisoning.
As stated above asbestos fibers were also once used in automobile brake pads, shoes, and clutch discs. Starting in the mid-1990s, a majority of brake pads, new or replacement, have been manufactured instead with linings made of ceramic, carbon, metallic and Aramid fiber (Twaron or Kevlar—the same material used in bulletproof vests) the issue then is with older cars and the mechanics that are working under these older cars.
Death by Asbestos
The US government and asbestos industry have received much criticism over the years for not acting quickly enough to inform and reduce exposure both to the public and to workers alike. By the late 1970s court documents began proving that asbestos industry officials had known of the dangers caused by asbestos since the 1930s but had chosen to concealed this critical information from the public.
The first asbestos documented death was in 1906. In the 1900s early on, researchers began took notice of large numbers of early deaths and also lung problems in the towns mining asbestos. The first diagnosis of asbestosis was made in England in 1924. England was the first country to regulate ventilation dealing with work places using asbestos. They also made asbestosis an excusable work related disease. The US moved much more slowly – it took them approximately ten years to regulate any asbestos work places.
The term Mesothelioma was not used in medical literature until 1931, and was not associated with asbestos until sometime in the 1940s.
When asbestos is used for its resistance to fire or heat, the fibers are often mixed with cement or woven into fabric or mats. Asbestos was used in some products for its heat resistance, and in the past was used on electric oven and hotplate wiring for its electrical insulation at elevated temperature, and in buildings for its flame-retardant and insulating properties, tensile strength, flexibility, and resistance to chemicals, like we stated earlier it really seemed to be the “miracle” fiber.
Disease
Three major diseases are associated with asbestos poisoning. These are asbestosis, mesothelioma, and lung cancer.
Asbestosis is caused when asbestos fibers are inhaled and become trapped in the lungs. In response to the foreign objects (asbestos fibers), the body tries to get rid of it by attempting to dissolve the particles by producing an acid. Unfortunately, the acid has virtually no impact on the asbestos fibers, but is detrimental to the lung tissues. With continual acid secretions, scarring of the lung tissue will lead to pulmonary fibrosis. The scarring can become so severe that it will reduce the functioning of the lungs thus causing asbestos poisoning.
Mesothelioma is a cancer of affecting the outside tissue of the lungs – the pleura, peritoneum, and pericardium. Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer that is solely attributed to asbestos poisoning. Symptoms of mesothelioma may not appear until 10 to 50 years after exposure to asbestos. Shortness of breath and pain in the chest due to an accumulation of fluid in the pleura are often symptoms of pleural mesothelioma. Mesothelioma, like other cancers, can be lethal if it metastasize and invade other organs. The prognosis for mesothelioma is not good. It is estimated that people die within two to four years once mesothelioma is diagnosed.
Lung Cancer can also be caused by exposure to asbestos. Lung cancer is a malignant tumour of the lungs, and is the most lethal malignant tumor worldwide. Most commonly it is bronchogenic carcinoma – about 90% of lung cancer cases. The chances of developing lung cancer from asbestos are greatly increased with smoking. The exposure to manifestation period for lung cancer from asbestos exposure is from 15 to 35 years.
Asbestos Today
Although the use of asbestos and its products has decreased dramatically, they are still found in many residential and commercial settings in the older buildings and structures and because of this continue to pose a health risk to workers and others.
Because of it’s relative newness and the low numbers of those effected research has yet to determine a safe level of exposure to asbestos, but the research has proven the more prolonged exposure the more likely you are to have problems.
Until 1972, most of the buildings in North America were constructed using some sort of asbestos materials, including homes, schools, and offices. At the time, no one knew that asbestos was deadly when inhaled.
Even once people did know they were not educated as to how to proceed in removing the asbestos from their homes. Many have removed asbestos themselves scraping it from the ceilings or removing the shingles without understanding the need of protection from the fibers that cause asbestos poisoning.
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