Asbestos Overview Page
The most tragic thing about mesotheleomia is that it can, in the vast majority of cases, be prevented. Mesotheleomia only develops after the person is exposed to a mineral called asbestos. But what is this “asbestos” thing anyway, and why was it ever used if it is so dangerous? Here is the low-down on one of the most dangerous substances in the home since lead paint.
What is asbestos?
Asbestos is a natural substance mined from the earth, but as is the case with radioactive elements, we know that not everything found in the earth is safe or healthy for us. Asbestos comes in six varieties, three of which are much more common than the others, and has properties that industrialists once found quite appealing. In addition to being fairly cheap to mine and produce, asbestos is also flexible, lightweight, durable, strong, waterproof, and first resistant.
Unfortunately, asbestos fibers aren’t very friendly. The air around asbestos is filled with tiny particles of the substance, often so small that the eye can’t even see these particles. Asbestos fibers are pointy and the edges are jagged. So, although this may at first seem like a wonderful material, introducing the fibers to your body can be dangerous.
So, why was asbestos ever used?
The dangers of asbestos have been known, or at least suspected, long before it was used in modern times. The Greeks noted that workers dealing with asbestos would get sick, and later groups of people discontinue its use. In the 1800s, people began using this mineral once again, ignoring ancient warnings. However, that didn’t stop independent groups from researching and doing studies on the product.
The exact dates are unknown, but it is likely that companies using asbestos knew of its dangers from the start and that these risks were confirmed by studies as early as the 1920s. Knowing that public knowledge of the problems with asbestos would open Pandora’s box, companies who made and used asbestos conspired to keep the findings a secret. Later, they paid to have their own studies done, and many tampered with the results in order to “prove” that asbestos was safe.
Other countries began outlawing asbestos, and as more and more cases of mesotheleomia and asbestosis arose in the United States, third-party research was done to find out about the long-term and short-term effects. The results shocked many workers who had been told that they were safe around the product and consumers who had bough items containing the product. It wasn’t until the 1980s, however, that asbestos was banned from most use in the United States.
Why are people still getting sick if asbestos was banned?
Asbestos might not be used in most industries anymore, but it is far from gone. Because of its properties, asbestos was extremely popular as a material to be used in construction products to build both homes and ships. Many homes and ships in the United States today were built before the asbestos regulation laws passed, so their inhabitants may still be exposed to asbestos, accounting for new cases of mesotheleomia and asbestosis every year. Renovation and demolition projects are extremely risky.
In addition, asbestos only causes problems in the body over long periods of time. When asbestos enters the body, ether through swallowing or inhalation, it becomes trapped in the soft tissue linings of the organs due to its jagged design. As a result, the tissue is torn or the particle is embedded in the body, and it can never truly heal. Mesotheleomia and other problems only develop over long periods of time. You don’t have to be continuously exposed to asbestos, but it isn’t unheard of for someone to develop asbestos-related diseases two or three decades after they are expose.
What can I do to protect myself from asbestos?
There is a very small amount of asbestos in the air in almost all parts of the world. However, unless you have been exposed to asbestos on a larger level, you don’t have to worry about mesotheleomia or related diseases. Your best course of action if you have been exposed, for whatever reason, is to see a doctor right away, even if you aren’t experiencing any symptoms. The sooner you find the problem, the better your chances of survival.
