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Asbestosis' true
Asbestosis is an asbetos-related disease and may be considered as an occupational disease too since the most cases occur among people who worked with asbestos or their families, but there are cases of people who developed it, without have been in...
Coping strategies found useful by mesothelioma victims
Mesothelioma is such a disease that affects not only the
person diagnosed with the disease, but his or her loved
ones, too. The intention to write this article is to offer
some resource for patients and their families who are living
with this...
Is There Asbestos In Your Floor?
A couple of years ago, I went to replace a vinyl floor in a basement level bathroom of my house. As I lifted up the old flooring I found the mastic was white with a fibrous look to it. Because my house was built over 20 years ago, I was concerned...
Mesothelioma Cancer- What to tell children
Telling children about any serious illness or disease is not easy. The best approach is a direct one as children, even very young ones, often sense that something is not right. Their fears need to tackled and honesty is the best policy. The amount...
Mesothelioma – Diagnosing The Silent Killer
Mesothelioma – What Does It Mean?
Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer. It is a cancer of Mesothelial cells. These cells cover the outer surface of most of our internal body organs, forming a lining called Mesothelium. Mesothelioma usually...
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Causes of Mesothelioma
Mesothelioma is a rare type of cancer in the general
population. However, in individuals that were exposed to
asbestos, it is not as rare. That's because the only known,
established cause of Mesothelioma is asbestos. There are experts
that have speculated on other causes. There are incidences of
Mesothelioma with no known asbestos exposure. However, that does
not mean that there was no exposure. The right questions have to
be asked. The person asking the question has to be familiar with
the uses and applications of the asbestos products. There are
many examples where inadequate occupational histories were taken
and potential exposures were not investigated.
Asbestos the single largest cause. Asbestos has actually been in
use for centuries and has been the cause of a number of ailments
and diseases, including the deadly cancer Mesothelioma. The word
Asbestos literally means inextinguishable and this name was
given to this mineral by the ancient Greeks. The Greeks gave it
this name because of its amazing fireproof qualities, although
they also noted the harmful effects that asbestos had upon
workers.
What is Asbestos? Asbestos is soft and flexible, and has been
widely used for many years for a variety of things. The modern
use for this mineral is for insulation, and it has been used in
a wide range of items and structures, from ceilings and walls to
toasters and hairdryers. This mineral became popular during the
industrial revolution as an effective and safe form of
insulation - safe in that it was fireproof, but certainly not
safe in any other sense. Although the risks involved in using
and working with asbestos had been observed several hundred
years earlier, these risks were not taken into account when
asbestos became widely used for insulation.
It was not until the 1900s that the facts regarding the risks
involved to workers began to
re-emerge. An English physician
carried out a post-mortem on a man who had worked with asbestos
for many years, and he found traces of fibers and dust in the
man's lungs. The doctor stated that the man had died due to his
exposure to this mineral. Over the next twenty or so years
professionals in many countries began to notice the fact that
disease, illness and death was uncommonly high amongst asbestos
workers.
In the mid 1920s, an English doctor made the first diagnosis of
asbestosis, and this was followed by a study, which showed that
25% of English asbestos workers showed signs of a related lung
disease. Laws were then stepped up in England to provide better
ventilation and more protection to workers who were regularly
exposed to asbestos. Other countries slowly followed these steps
over the next decade.
This protection was slow to be implemented and did not prove all
that effective. Although asbestos manufacturers and companies
that used the mineral were now aware of these studies and the
risks involved to workers, they continued to use asbestos
widely, exposing many workers to the hazards associated with it.
These employees continued to work with asbestos, totally
oblivious of the harm that it was capable of causing. Asbestos
continued to be widely used until the mid-seventies, by which
time many workers has been exposed and were already unknowingly
affected by what we now know as Mesothelioma.
About the author:
Rob Mellor owns the free to use
www.mesotheliomasupportonline.com website helping people find
out more about mesothelioma
symptoms. Please visit the site for more information on mesothelioma causes
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