The Dangers of Exposure to Asbestos

Asbestos was found in thousands of commercial products prior to when it was banned. Studies have shown that exposure to asbestos can cause cancer and other health issues.

It is difficult to tell by looking at something if it is made up of asbestos. You cannot taste or smell it. Asbestos is only detectable when the substances that contain it are broken or drilled.

Chrysotile

At its peak, chrysotile accounted for 90% of the asbestos that was produced. It was employed in a variety of industries including construction insulation, fireproofing, and insulation. If workers are exposed to asbestos, they may develop mesothelioma or other asbestos-related diseases. Since the 1960s, when mesothelioma first became an issue, the use of asbestos has decreased significantly. It is still present in a variety of products we use today.

Chrysotile can be used safely when a thorough safety and handling plan is put in place. Workers handling chrysotile are not exposed to an undue amount of risk at the current safe exposure levels. Inhaling airborne fibers is strongly linked to lung cancer and lung fibrosis. This has been proven in terms of intensity (dose) as and the duration of exposure.

In one study, mortality rates were compared between a manufacturing facility that primarily used chrysotile in the manufacture of friction materials and the national death rate. It was concluded that over the course of 40 years, processing chrysotile asbestos at low levels of exposure there was no significant extra mortality in the factory.

Chrysotile fibers are generally shorter than other types of asbestos. They are able to penetrate the lungs and pass into the bloodstream. This makes them more prone to causing health consequences than longer fibres.

When chrysotile mixes with cement, it's extremely difficult for the fibres to air-borne and cause health hazards. Fibre cement products are utilized in many areas of the world including hospitals and schools.

Studies have shown that chrysotile is less prone to cause illness than amphibole asbestos such as crocidolite and amosite. These amphibole varieties are the main source of mesothelioma as well as other asbestos-related diseases. When chrysotile gets mixed with cement, it forms an extremely durable and flexible building product that can withstand extreme conditions in the weather and other environmental dangers. It is also easy to clean after use. Professionals can safely eliminate asbestos fibres when they have been removed.

Amosite

Asbestos is one of the groups of fibrous silicates that are found in certain types of rock formations. It consists of six general groups: serpentine, amphibole, tremolite, anthophyllite and crocidolite (IARC 1973).

Asbestos minerals consist of long, thin fibers that vary in length from fine to broad. They can be curled or straight. They can be found in nature as bundles or individual fibrils. Asbestos minerals can be found in the form of a powder (talc) or mixed with other minerals and sold as talcum powder and vermiculite, which have been widely used in consumer products like baby powder cosmetics, face powder and baby powder.

The greatest asbestos use was during the first two-thirds of the 20th century, when it was used in insulation, shipbuilding, fireproofing and other construction materials. Most occupational exposures were to asbestos fibres borne by air, but some workers were exposed toxic talc or vermiculite and also to fragments of asbestos-bearing rock (ATSDR, 2001). Exposures varied from industry to industry, era to, and geographical location.

Asbestos exposure in the workplace is mostly caused by inhalation. However, some workers have been exposed by contact with their skin or through eating foods contaminated with asbestos. Asbestos is only found in the environment because of natural weathering and degrading of contaminated materials, such as ceiling and floor tiles as well as car brakes and clutches, as well as insulation.

It is becoming clear that non-commercial amphibole fibres may also be carcinogenic. They are not tightly weaved like the fibrils that are found in amphibole and serpentine they are loose elastic, flexible, and needle-like. These fibers can be found in the mountains and cliffs of several countries.

Asbestos enters the environment mainly in the form of airborne particles, however it can also leach into water and soil. This can be due to both natural (weathering of asbestos-bearing rock) as well as anthropogenic sources (disintegration of asbestos-containing wastes and disposal in landfill sites). Asbestos contamination of surface and ground waters is primarily caused by natural weathering. However, it has also been caused by anthropogeny, Asbestos such as by the milling and mining of asbestos-containing materials demolition and dispersal and the disposal of contaminated dumping material in landfills (ATSDR 2001). Inhalation exposure to asbestos fibres is still the primary cause of illness in people exposed to it occupationally.

Crocidolite

Inhalation exposure to asbestos is the most popular way people are exposed to the dangerous fibres, which can then be inhaled and cause serious health issues. This includes asbestosis and mesothelioma. Exposure to asbestos fibers can also take place in other ways, such as contact with contaminated clothes or building materials. This kind of exposure is especially dangerous when crocidolite (the blue form of asbestos) is involved. Crocidolite fibers are thinner and more fragile and therefore easier to inhale. They can also be lodged deeper within lung tissues. It has been linked to a larger number of mesothelioma-related cancers than any other type of asbestos.

The main kinds are chrysotile and amosite. Amosite and chrysotile are two of the most commonly used forms of asbestos. They comprise 95 percent of all commercial asbestos that is used. The other four asbestos types aren't as well-known, but can still be present in older structures. They are not as dangerous as amosite or chrysotile however they could still be a danger when mixed with other minerals or when mined close to other mineral deposits like talc and vermiculite.

Numerous studies have demonstrated the connection between stomach cancer and asbestos exposure. However the evidence isn't conclusive. Some researchers have reported an overall SMR (standardized mortality ratio) of 1.5 (95 percent of the time CI: 0.7-3.6) for all asbestos-related workers and others have reported an SMR of 1.24 (95 percent C.I. 0.76-2.5) for those working in chrysotile mines and mills.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has classed all asbestos types as carcinogenic. All asbestos types can cause mesothelioma, however the risks differ based on the amount of exposure is taken, what type of asbestos is involved and how long the exposure lasts. The IARC has recommended that avoiding all forms of asbestos is the most important thing to do since this is the safest option for people. If you have been exposed in the past to asbestos and suffer from a respiratory disorder or mesothelioma, you should talk to your doctor or NHS111.

Amphibole

Amphibole is a class of minerals that form long prisms or needlelike crystals. They are a type of silicate mineral made up of double chains of SiO4 molecules. They are a monoclinic system of crystals, however some exhibit an orthorhombic structure. The general formula of an amphibole is A0-1B2C5T8O22(OH,F)2. Double chains contain (Si, Al)O4 tetrahedrons linked together in rings of six tetrahedrons. Tetrahedrons can be separated by strips of octahedral sites.

Amphiboles are found in metamorphic and igneous rock. They are usually dark and hard. They are sometimes difficult to differentiate from pyroxenes since they share similar hardness and colors. They also share a similar design of cleavage. Their chemistry can allow for a variety of compositions. The various mineral groups in amphibole can be identified by their chemical compositions as well as crystal structures.

The five types of asbestos belonging to the amphibole family are amosite, anthophyllite and crocidolite. They also include actinolite. Each type of asbestos has distinct characteristics. Crocidolite is the most hazardous asbestos (Http://125.141.133.9) kind. It has sharp fibers that can easily be inhaled into the lung. Anthophyllite comes in a brownish-to yellowish color and is made primarily of magnesium and iron. This type was used to make cement and insulation materials.

Amphibole minerals are hard to analyze due to their a complicated chemical structure and a variety of substitutions. A thorough analysis of composition of amphibole minerals requires special methods. EDS, WDS and XRD are the most widely used methods of identifying amphiboles. These methods are only able to provide approximate identifications. For example, these techniques cannot distinguish between magnesiohastingsite and magnesio-hornblende. These techniques also do not distinguish between ferro-hornblende as well as pargasite.