Asbestos-Truth

The Second World War was the time when asbestos was used the most by industry since it's introduction in the 19th century. The United States was the first country to issue laws banning the use of asbestos after irrefutable evidence came to light that asbestos was finding it's way into the environment.

The EPA strengthened the laws on the use of asbestos in the 80's, banning the use of asbestos in any new use. Although there has been much publicity about asbestos and many regulations passed either banning or controlling it's use many people are unaware of how harmful asbestos can be.

Asbestos fibre occurs naturally as fibre bundles and it was these that were mined to create asbestos used in industry. The reasons why asbestos was so popular with industry was that it has amazing resistance to heat and chemicals and it dose not conduct electricity. Construction and manufacturing were ready willing and able to put asbestos to work in a wide variety of applications.

Asbestos was used in thermal pipe insulation; fireproof clothing for fire fighters and fire doors. The banning of the use of asbestos put pained to it's use in the construction industry but up until this time it was widely used for joint compound, sound proofing an well as wall and ceiling tiles. The use of asbestos is legal as long as that use means that the asbestos will not come into contact with people or the environment.

The medical profession takes asbestos exposure very seriously because there are a number of possible health risks, which are untreatable with current medical technology. Inhaling asbestos fibres commonly results in asbestosis, an inflammation of the lungs caused by the asbestos fibres aggravating the lining of the lungs.

A less commonly known ailment of asbestos is mesothelioma; it is a cancer caused by exposure to asbestos that effect the major organs of the body. Pericardial mesothelioma is a cancer that affects the heart; pleural mesothelioma affects the lining of the lung.

History notes that Greek and roman slaves whose job it was to weave asbestos fibres into cloth often suffered from damaged lungs. The first diagnosis of asbestosis was made in England in 1924, by the 1930s, England regulated ventilation and made asbestosis a work related disease.

The use of asbestos by industry dropped dramatically once the levels of litigation from its victims began to increase. If manufacturers follow the legally required safety standard then asbestos use is still legal.

The author of this web articles has written many other articles about asbestos. If you are interested you can find links to some of their other work below.