Chemical Casebook: Asbestos

Asbestos is a mineral fiber resistant to heat and chemical corrosion. Its properties make it useful as an insulation and a fire-retardant. Asbestos was widely used until recent years when the serious health hazards related to exposure were recognized.

The problem is that asbestos crumbles into tiny fibers, even smaller than you can see. They float in the air for hours and get caught in the lungs and other systems of the body and cause illness years later.

Inhaling tiny fibers of asbestos is known to cause these serious illnesses:

• Asbestosis is a lung disease caused by long exposure to asbestos dust. Scarring of the lung tissue causes breathlessness.
• Lung cancer is a greater risk for asbestos workers than for other persons. Cigarette smoking increases the risk.
• Cancer of the windpipe, stomach and intestines can be related to asbestos.
• Mesothelioma is a rare and fatal cancer of the lining of the chest or abdominal cavity linked to asbestos exposure.

Asbestos illnesses have shown up years later in persons exposed through work such as mining and milling the substance, as well as construction, building maintenance, manufacturing, demolition, brake repair and many other fields. Families of these workers have also been exposed to fibers brought home on work clothing.

Persons can also be exposed when occupying buildings where asbestos building materials are worn, damaged or disturbed. Asbestos can be present in insulation, fireproofing, acoustical materials, floor tiles, textured paints, shingles and other materials.

Some uses of asbestos have been banned altogether, and manufacturers have voluntarily curtailed asbestos use in other products.

Government safety regulations are now in place to help workers avoid the hazards. Testing is required to keep exposure under established safe limits. Engineering controls are required to keep workers and asbestos separate. Protective clothing and respirators are other lines of defense against worker exposure. After working with asbestos intensive products and intense asbestos removal work, a shower while wearing a respirator and a clean-room change of clothes are other required precautions. If your job involves asbestos in any capacity, get the proper training and equipment and follow all safe procedures.

If you think your own home may contain asbestos, get expert help. If the material is in good condition it may be best to leave it alone. Do not cut or sand materials containing asbestos. If these materials must be removed, call a professional abatement contractor to do the job.

Asbestos has been an extremely useful material, keeping buildings warm, firefighters cool and brakes from burning up. But it has also caused many painful deaths. Don't expose yourself to asbestos.