subject: Warning - Asbestos Removal Can Be Very, Very Dangerous [print this page] Warning - Asbestos Removal Can Be Very, Very Dangerous
Every type of the commonly available types of asbestos has been linked to non-cancerous as well as cancerous lung diseases and abdominal diseases. Although used for centuries, asbestos has been found to be a potentially very dangerous substance. For example, if asbestos fibers are inhaled they can cause malignant mesothelioma.Asbestos has been used for more than one hundred years to insulate buildings. Throughout most of the twentieth century it could be found in furnaces, textured paints, pipes, millboard, floor tiles, and various materials that were used to coat the surface of walls.Over the years, asbestos coated walls and wiring have often been painted over. Covering it with paint has helped to prevent the fibers and particles from becoming airborne.In most of these older buildings asbestos particles will not become airborne unless they are damaged or disturbed. However, should the asbestos become frayed, or should the building be demolished, then asbestos fibers could easily be inhaled or swallowed. In addition, very high concentrations of asbestos will become airborne if it is cut or sanded.Only Qualified Experts Should Remove AsbestosAny attempts to remodel an area that has asbestos containing materials should be left to a qualified expert.If you do not have the proper protective clothing, breathing apparatus, etc, and you attempt to remove or clean items that are laden with asbestos dust you will run the risk of disbursing asbestos fibers into the air and taking them into your body.An inexperienced person who tries to remove asbestos will inevitably release dangerous levels of asbestos fibers into the air. When that happens there is a very good chance that they will eventually come down with an asbestos related disease. It may take twenty to forty years but it will probably happen.If you are considering removing asbestos by yourself and you do not have the proper training you are risking your life and the lives of the ones you love.Which Are the Most Dangerous Types of Asbestos?There are two major types of asbestos fibers, chrysotile and amphiboles. White asbestos, sometimes called Serpentine, are long and curled chrysotile fibers.The fibers that are more likely to cause pleural fibrosis and mesothelioma are the amphiboles, which are straight and long fibers. These include tremolite, corcidolite, anthrophylite, amosite, and actinolite.However both types of fibers can cause lung diseases such as asbestosis.Although exposure to chrysotile fibers is more likely to cause lung cancer, exposure to both kinds of fibers increases the risk of contracting lung cancer by a factor of two.What is the "Safe" Level of Asbestos Exposure?Although OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) has set a 0.2 fibers/milliliter of air workplace standard for asbestos exposure, many people believe that there is no minimum safe level of exposure to asbestos.
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