Asbestos, Characteristics and Health Problems Caused

Actually, asbestosis is not a cancer. Asbestosis is caused someone inhaling asbestos fibers that irritate lung tissue, causing injury to the lung tissue. This scar tissue resulting in difficulty breathing because the oxygen and carbon dioxide through the lungs difficult. Asbestosis generally progresses slowly. Asbestosis latency period for onset is usually 10-20 years after initial exposure. This disease can vary from asymptomatic (without symptoms) to get can be fatal to health. Some signs and ejala asbestosis can include: shortness of breath as the main symptoms, coughing, chest tightness, chest pain, loss of appetite, dry crackling sound occurs in the lungs while breathing.

Asbestos But what exactly is it? Here are the various properties and characteristics of asbestos materials that are important to know.

Asbestos is a fibrous mineral with the name of a group of separate fibers, long and thin. Asbestos fibers have strong potential to be released in the air. Asbestos fibers are heat resistant, so it is widely used for industrial purposes. Because of their durability, asbestos fibers get into the lung tissue will continue to persist in the lungs for a long time.

Generally there are two types of asbestos, amphibole and chrysotile. Several studies suggest that amphibole fibers have the ability to stay longer in the lungs than chrysotile l. Based on the trends, so that this kind of this substance to be toxic to the body.

Meanwhile, according to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), there are six types of asbestos minerals, with most types namely chrysotile and amphibole five types of groups, ie actinolite, tremolite, anthophyllite, crocidolite, and amosite.

The threshold value of asbestos concentration in the ambient air in the range from 00,001 to 0.0001 fibers per milliliter (fiber / mL). If the threshold value is exceeded will be at risk to the effects on human health.

Asbestos fibers can only be seen with a microscope. For some reason, causing the fibers suspended in the air, they can be easily inhaled when we breathe and enter the lungs. Scientists have recognized asbestos as a health threat to humans because the fibers can be inhaled into the lungs and can cause cancer and other lung diseases. This risk is increased especially when we are in an environment exposed to asbestos dust in the long term. Unknown incubation period is a time lag between when inhaling causing health manifestations may last for 30 years or more.