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What is asbestos?
Asbestos defined
The name ‘asbestos’ (from the Greek, meaning “unquenchable”) refers to a group of six naturally-occurring fibrous forms of mineral silicates. Asbestos silicates grow in crystalline structures of microscopic fibers that are so light that once broken off from the host, can remain suspended in the air for long periods of time. Despite its fibrous, pliable nature, asbestos is a rock with a high tensile strength and the qualities of being impervious to fire, water, and corrosion.
Significant asbestos deposits can be found in rock formations in Canada, Russia, the United States, and South Africa.
Asbestos uses
The fireproofing and insulating qualities of asbestos, combined with its abundance and low cost has made it a highly desirable material for widespread use in manufacturing since the industrial revolution. Asbestos is usually processed into flexible fibers that can be woven together to make a wide variety of products for industrial and consumer uses. Asbestos can be used in acoustic insulation, thermal insulation, fire-proofing materials, and other building materials, like roofing and flooring.
Pliable asbestos fibers can be woven into textiles or added to compounds such as adhesives, mastics, cements, tile, and more to increase the tensile strength of the compound.
While asbestos was heavily used in the early part of the twentieth century in building materials, its use exploded in World War II when it was used for fireproofing naval vessels. For the four decades following the War, asbestos was used in thousands of products – from transite building materials to cigarette filters. Asbestos use peaked in 1973 before widespread knowledge of its hazards became known and its use declined.
Today, asbestos use is on the rise in developing countries looking for cheap and abundant building materials. Contrary to widespread belief, asbestos has not been banned in the United States. There are many organizations that focus on the goal to ban asbestos, and Sokolove Law is in full support.
Types of asbestos
There are six types of asbestos, but only a few types have been used commercially. These include
- Chrysotile or “white asbestos” is the most commonly used type of asbestos historically, and is the only type mined on a large scale today.
- Amosite or “brown” asbestos is the second most prevalent type of asbestos, and is considered one of the most hazardous forms after blue asbestos.
- Crocidolite or “blue” asbestos is considered the most hazardous of the asbestos silicates, and was used primarily in asbestos-cement products.
Exposure to all forms of asbestos are considered risk factors for a range of diseases, including mesothelioma cancer.
You can read more about these in the Types of Asbestos section of this website.
Dangers of asbestos
Exposure to asbestos fibers has been definitively linked to a spectrum of cancers and respiratory diseases, including asbestosis and mesothelioma cancer. Sharp, spear-like asbestos fibers break off easily, creating a fine dust that can be inhaled by the thousands in each breath. Inhaled fibers become embedded in the mesothelium, the delicate wall of cells that line many of the body’s internal organs. Over time, the embedded fibers irritate and then scar the internal organs. Over many years or decades, this scarring can cut off the oxygen supply to the body, slowly suffocating the victim. The irritation can also lead to mesothelioma, a rare but deadly disease that affects the lungs, stomach or rarely, the heart.
The lag time between exposure to asbestos and the symptoms of mesothelioma and other diseases can be as long as 40 years.
Asbestos and legal issues
The dangers of asbestos exposure were detailed in medical literature dating from the 1920s. And the companies who manufactured asbestos products knew since the 1930s that their products were injuring and killing their workers, yet hid and suppressed that knowledge. It was not until the 1960s that mesothelioma attorneys started to prove that asbestos companies were guilty of failing to warn their workers and the public of the dangers of asbestos that the tide began to turn.
The rise of asbestos law and asbestos attorneys has greatly curtailed asbestos use and brought justice and compensation to many thousands of individuals and families suffering from the greed and negligence of the asbestos industry. Read more about the history of asbestos law.
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