The Dangers of Exposure to Asbestos

Before it was banned, asbestos was used in a myriad of commercial products. According research, exposure to asbestos can cause cancer and many other health problems.

It is impossible to determine if a product includes asbestos by looking at it, and you won't be able to taste or smell it. It is only found when the asbestos-containing materials are drilled, chipped or broken.

Chrysotile

At its height, chrysotile was responsible for 90% of the asbestos made. It was utilized in a variety of industries including construction insulation, fireproofing, and construction. If workers are exposed to asbestos, they can develop mesothelioma or other asbestos-related diseases. Thankfully, the use of this hazardous mineral has declined drastically since mesothelioma awareness started to increase in the 1960's. It is still present in a variety of products we use in the present.

Chrysotile is safe to use when you have a thorough safety and handling plan in place. Workers handling chrysotile are not exposed to a significant amount of risk at the present controlled exposure levels. Inhaling airborne fibers has been strongly associated with lung fibrosis and lung cancer. This has been proven to be true for both the intensity (dose) and time of exposure.

In one study mortality rates were compared between a manufacturing facility that used a large proportion of Chrysotile in the production of friction materials and the national death rate. The study found that, after 40 years of converting low levels of chrysotile, there was no significant increase in mortality at this factory.

Chrysotile fibres are typically shorter than other forms of asbestos. They can penetrate the lungs and enter the bloodstream. They are therefore more likely to cause health problems than fibres that are longer.

When chrysotile gets mixed with cement, it's extremely difficult for the fibres to air-borne and pose any health risk. Fibre cement products are extensively utilized in many areas of the world including hospitals and schools.

Research has shown that amphibole asbestos, like amosite or crocidolite is not as likely than chrysotile in causing disease. Amphibole types like these are the main cause of mesothelioma, and other asbestos-related diseases. When cement and chrysotile mix together, a strong and flexible material is created that is able to stand up to extreme weather conditions and environmental hazards. It is also very easy to clean up after use. Professionals can safely eliminate asbestos fibres when they have been removed.

Amosite

asbestos litigation refers to a group of silicate fibrous minerals which are found naturally in a variety of kinds of rock formations. It is divided into six groups including amphibole (serpentine) and the tremolite (tremolite) anthophyllite (crocidolite) and anthophyllite.

Asbestos minerals consist of thin, long fibers that vary in length from fine to broad. They can also be curled or straight. These fibres are found in nature as individual fibrils, or as bundles that have splaying ends, referred to as fibril matrix. Asbestos can also be found in powder form (talc), or combined with other minerals in order to create talcum powder or vermiculite. These are commonly used in consumer products like baby powder, cosmetics, and face powder.

Asbestos was heavily used in the early two-thirds of the 20th century for construction of ships insulation, fireproofing, insulation and other construction materials. Most occupational exposures were to asbestos fibres that were borne in the air, but some workers were exposed vermiculite or talc that was contaminated and also to fragments of asbestos-bearing rock (ATSDR, 2001). Exposures varied according to industry, time period and geographical location.

Most of the asbestos exposures that workers were exposed to was due to inhalation. However, some workers were also exposed through contact with skin or through eating contaminated food. Asbestos is only found in the natural environment due to natural weathering and degrading of products that are contaminated like ceiling and floor tiles as well as car brakes and clutches, and insulation.

It is becoming apparent that non-commercial amphibole fibres may also be carcinogenic. These fibers aren't tightly knit like the fibrils found in amphibole and serpentine but are instead loose as well as flexible and needle-like. They can be found in the cliffs, mountains and sandstones from a variety of nations.

Asbestos may enter the environment in many ways, such as in airborne particles. It can also be released into water or soil. This can be caused by both natural (weathering of asbestos-bearing rocks) and asbestos attorney anthropogenic causes (disintegration of asbestos-containing wastes and disposal in landfill sites). Asbestos attorney contamination in surface and ground waters is primarily caused by natural weathering. However it can also be caused by humans, such as through the mining and milling of asbestos-containing materials demolition and dispersal and the disposal of contaminated dumping material in landfills (ATSDR 2001). Airborne asbestos fibres are the primary cause of illness in people exposed to it in their work.

Crocidolite

Inhalation exposure is the most commonly used method of exposure to asbestos fibres. These fibres can enter the lungs which can cause serious health issues. These include asbestosis and mesothelioma. Exposure to the fibres can also take place in other ways, such as contact with contaminated clothes or building materials. This type of exposure is especially dangerous when crocidolite (the blue asbestos form) is involved. Crocidolite has smaller, more fragile fibers that are more easy to breathe and can be lodged deeper into lung tissue. It has been associated with more mesothelioma cases than other types of asbestos.

The six major types of asbestos are chrysotile amosite and tremolite. They are epoxiemite, tremol anthophyllite, and actinolite. Amosite and chrysotile are two of the most frequently used types of asbestos and make up 95% of all commercial asbestos in use. The other four asbestos types aren't as prevalent, but could still be found in older structures. They are not as dangerous as amosite or chrysotile but still pose a threat when combined with other minerals or when mined near other naturally occurring mineral deposits such as talc and vermiculite.

Several studies have found an connection between exposure to asbestos and stomach cancer. A number of studies have confirmed that asbestos exposure is linked to stomach. The evidence isn't conclusive. Some researchers have reported an SMR (standardized death ratio) of 1.5 (95% confidence interval: 0.7-3.6), for all asbestos workers. However, others report an SMR of 1,24 (95% confidence interval: 0.76-2.5), for those who work in chrysotile mines and mills.

IARC, the International Agency for Research on Cancer, has classified all forms of asbestos as carcinogenic. All kinds of asbestos can cause mesothelioma or other health problems, but the risks differ based on the amount of exposure that people are exposed to, the type of asbestos involved, the duration of their exposure and the way in which it is breathed in or ingested. The IARC has advised that avoiding all forms of asbestos should be the highest priority as it is the most secure option for individuals. If someone has been exposed to asbestos compensation in the past and are suffering from a disease such as mesothelioma or any other respiratory diseases and require advice, they should seek out guidance from their physician or NHS 111.

Amphibole

Amphibole is a group of minerals that form long prism or needle-like crystals. They are an inosilicate mineral composed of double chains of SiO4 molecules. They usually have a monoclinic crystal structure however, some have an orthorhombic structure. The general formula of an amphibole is A0-1B2C5T8O22(OH,F)2. The double chains are made up of (Si,Al)O4 Tetrahedrons that are joined in rings of six. Tetrahedrons can be separated by octahedral strips.

Amphiboles are found in both igneous and metamorphic rock. They are usually dark and hard. They can be difficult to differentiate from pyroxenes as they share similar hardness and color. They also share a corresponding the cleavage pattern. However, their chemistry allows for an array of compositions. The chemical compositions and crystal structure of the different mineral groups in amphibole could be used to determine their composition.

Amphibole asbestos includes chrysotile and the five types of asbestos amosite, anthophyllite (crocidolite), amosite (actinolite) and amosite. Each variety of asbestos has distinct characteristics. Crocidolite is the most dangerous asbestos kind. It has sharp fibers that are easily breathed into the lungs. Anthophyllite has a brownish to yellowish hue and is comprised primarily of magnesium and iron. It was previously used in cement and insulation materials.

Amphibole minerals are hard to analyze due to their complex chemical structures and many substitutions. Therefore, a detailed analysis of their composition requires specialized techniques. The most popular methods to identify amphiboles are EDS, WDS, and XRD. However, these methods can only provide approximate identifications. For instance, these methods can't distinguish between magnesio hastingsite and magnesio-hornblende. In addition, these techniques can not distinguish between ferro-hornblende as well as pargasite.