What is Asbestos?
Asbestos is a general name given to a group of six different minerals made up of fibers and occurring naturally in the environment. Asbestos minerals do not dissolve in water or evaporate.
Asbestos minerals have good heat resistant properties. Given these characteristics, asbestos has been used for a wide range of manufactured goods, including building materials (roofing shingles, ceiling and floor tiles, paper products, and asbestos cement products), friction products (automobile clutch, brake, and transmission parts), heat resistant fabrics, packaging, gaskets, and coatings.
Asbestos was a popular building material from the 1950’s to 1990’s and can have serious health effects on everyone.
What are the health effects?
Breathing high levels of asbestos fibers can lead to an increased risk of lung cancer, mesothelioma (a cancer of the chest and abdominal linings) and asbestosis (irreversible lung scarring that can be fatal).
The risk of lung cancer and mesothelioma increases with the number of fibers inhaled. Most people with asbestos-related diseases were exposed to high concentrations on the job.
Breathing asbestos could harm you. Avoiding asbestos and keeping dust down are the best ways to keep from breathing asbestos.
How can you be exposed to asbestos?
In the past, companies mined asbestos minerals to use in making many types of consumer products. Although most products no longer contain asbestos, it’s still used in a few products in the United States and in some other countries. Asbestos is present in old asbestos containing consumer products. As these old products break down due to age or improper disposal, asbestos fibers can be spread throughout the environment.
You might breathe in asbestos fibers if asbestos-containing products or rocks are disturbed in some way. In areas that have natural asbestos or low-level asbestos contamination of soil, you could be exposed by
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- Digging or shoveling dirt or using a leaf blower
- Running, hiking, bicycling, or riding off-road vehicles on unpaved surface
- You can also breathe in asbestos indoors if old asbestos materials are present or if someone has tracked asbestos into the house from outside.
What should you do if you suspect asbestos might be present in your home or environment?
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- Be concerned. Breathing asbestos can cause cancer and other diseases. Current science indicates that breathing any type of asbestos at any level can increase the risk of disease.
- Don’t panic. In most cases, asbestos-related diseases develop after many years of regular exposure to relatively high levels of asbestos. Years (sometimes decades) may pass before disease develops, if it ever does.
- Take action. Reducing possible asbestos exposure now will minimize your risk of developing any asbestos disease in the future.
How can you reduce asbestos exposure?
- Minimize possible sources.
Avoid touching or disturbing any possible asbestos-containing materials in your home. Pictures clockwise show examples of old pipe insulation, textured ceilings, damaged floor tiles, and vermiculite attic insulation.
Talk to your local or state environmental agency or an asbestos contractor about having asbestos-containing materials safely removed.
- Prevent dirt and dust from entering your home.
Use doormats and remove shoes before entering.
Wipe your pets with a damp cloth.
Keep windows and doors closed on windy days and during nearby construction.
- Clean your home properly.
Use a wet rag to dust, instead of a dry rag or duster.
Use a wet mop on non-carpeted floors.
Vacuum often using a vacuum with a high efficiency HEPA filter.
Use washable area rugs on your floors, and wash them regularly.