{"id":342,"date":"2014-09-24T09:00:04","date_gmt":"2014-09-24T09:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/blog\/?p=342"},"modified":"2014-09-11T19:38:33","modified_gmt":"2014-09-11T19:38:33","slug":"asbestos-bad-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/blog\/2014\/09\/asbestos-bad-health\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Is Asbestos Bad for My Health?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/asbestos-testing.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-343\" src=\"http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/asbestos-testing-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"asbestos testing\" width=\"325\" height=\"217\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/asbestos-testing-300x200.jpg 300w, http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/asbestos-testing.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 325px) 100vw, 325px\" \/><\/a>Asbestos and asbestos testing have been in the news on and off for decades now, which can make you wonder why it is a still a problem and what the associated health risks are. To better understand the problem and solutions, it is important to have some basic knowledge of asbestos and how people have used it.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>About Asbestos<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Asbestos is actually a naturally occurring mineral group that is able to withstand high temperatures and corrosion. All six types of asbestos are composed of fibrous crystals that are long and thin. It is durable and can withstand a high amount of physical stress.<\/p>\n<p>There are two divisions for asbestos:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Serpentine<\/li>\n<li>Amphibole<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Of the six asbestos minerals, only\u00a0chrysotile\u00a0is categorized as serpentine.\u00a0Chrysotile\u00a0is considerably more flexible than the other types of asbestos. The remaining five types are amphibole:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Amosite<\/li>\n<li>Crocidolite<\/li>\n<li>Tremolite<\/li>\n<li>Anthophyllite<\/li>\n<li>Actinolite<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><strong>The Problem<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Because it has so many desirable qualities of a strong building material, asbestos was used in many construction projects and building materials until the\u00a01970s. It was also commonly used in heating insulation and with electrical work. By the time the potential health risks were discovered, asbestos was already used in many newer homes and buildings all over North America.<\/p>\n<p>Firmly contained asbestos, such as in tile or tightly bound in insulation, pose no significant health risk, just like naturally occurring asbestos. However, once the enclosure containing the asbestos is broken, the material can become airborne, where it becomes extremely dangerous to people and animals.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>The Health Risks and the Need for Asbestos Testing<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Asbestos is a carcinogen, meaning it is extremely harmful to your lungs. Several diseases associated with asbestos exposure:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Pleural plaque and effusion \u2013 the hardening of tissue or buildup of fluid around lungs and the diaphragm<\/li>\n<li>Asbestosis \u2013 the scarring of lung tissue that can lead to lung cancer<\/li>\n<li>Lung cancer \u2013 generally forms in the cells lining the lungs&#8217; air passages<\/li>\n<li>Mesothelima\u00a0\u2013 cancer of the tissue around the lungs and diaphragm<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Not all of these diseases have symptoms, so you may not be aware that there is a problem. This is why asbestos testing is so critical; once you aware of the exposure, you can seek medical attention.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Minimizing Asbestos Exposure Through Limits and Asbestos Testing<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Construction workers are most at risk, but there are also risks to people who have asbestos in their homes. While asbestos mining has not been stopped, it is under strict regulations by the Canadian government. Since\u00a0chrysotile\u00a0mining is roughly 95% of the focus, things made with asbestos today are much safer than in the\u00a020th\u00a0century. However, there are still risks for older building and facilities, as well as for newer buildings that have asbestos products.<\/p>\n<p>Before beginning any do-it-yourself projects that involve working with insulation or tile, you need to find out what material was used to make them. In the event asbestos was one off the materials, you should follow these precautions.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Dress in appropriate clothing and use an approved single-use respirator.<\/li>\n<li>Secure the area, and keep people and pets away from it.<\/li>\n<li>Dampen the material before you begin to reduce how much asbestos become airborne.<\/li>\n<li>Place all asbestos materials in a sealable bag and contact your local municipality for proper disposal methods.<\/li>\n<li>Thoroughly clean the workspace and clothing. Use a damp cloth to clean up the area. Do not use a vacuum as this will help release the asbestos into the air.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Before beginning any project that could expose you to asbestos it is best to seek\u00a0professional advice\u00a0and have\u00a0professionals conduct <a href=\"http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/asbestos-testing\">asbestos testing<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Asbestos and asbestos testing have been in the news on and off for decades now, which can make you wonder why it is a still a problem and what the associated health risks are. To better understand the problem and &hellip; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/blog\/2014\/09\/asbestos-bad-health\/\">Read More <span class=\"meta-nav\">&raquo;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[9],"tags":[22],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/342"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=342"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/342\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":345,"href":"http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/342\/revisions\/345"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=342"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=342"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.assuranceenvironmental.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=342"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}