History of asbestos

History of asbestos mosaicscience.com

History of asbestos

The Society for Supporting Asbestos Disease (ADSS) consists of people who already have asbestos-related diseases, family, friends, and caregivers and unions, representatives of the asbestos industry, and relevant government departments. The agency also works closely with medical and legal professionals who are experienced in asbestos related diseases.

ADSS is here to help anyone affected by asbestos-related diseases - both directly and indirectly. ADSS is able to provide information and moral and emotional support to sufferers, guardians, family members and friends. We can also provide advice and contact information to receive the best medical care and legal advice. Those affected by asbestos, or their dependents, may be entitled to receive compensation and / or retirement.

What is asbestos?

Asbestos is a group of minerals that are mined and then processed. It consists of very fine crystals that can be inhaled and can penetrate the smallest airways. They irritate the lung tissue and cannot be cleaned by the lungs.

Asbestos is widely used in buildings as insulation and fireproof, and in the textile industry. Two of the three houses built between the 1940s and 1980s contained asbestos. Concerns about toxicity increased in Australia in the 1970s. Its use was removed in the 1980s. In Australia, houses built after 1990 could not contain asbestos and were completely banned in 2003.

Who is at risk?

If you have worked with asbestos, or live with someone who works with asbestos, or plays in asbestos piles that are dumped as a child, or lives in an area where asbestos is mined, there is a high chance that you can develop asbestos-related diseases.

Disease caused by asbestos

Diseases caused by asbestos include mesothelioma, asbestosis, lung cancer, pleurisy and other cancers.

Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma is a cancer that covers the lungs (pleura). This disease can take approximately 20 to 40 years to develop, but once it starts to spread rapidly. Usually fatal in a year.

Asbestosis

Asbestosis is chronic irritation of the airways caused by asbestos fibers. The lungs become stiff and also cannot expand. This causes difficulty in breathing. This disease gradually worsens for years, even when exposure to asbestos is stopped.

Lung cancer

Lung cancer can develop in people who breathe asbestos fibers. This is more common in people who often smoke.

Pleural disease

Pleural disease is a symptom of inflammation of the lining of the lungs (pleura). This disease causes hardening of the lungs and difficulty breathing.

Asbestos exposure also increases the risk of laryngeal (ballot box), ovary and testicular cancer.

History of asbestos hazards.org

Do what?

If you feel you have come in contact with asbestos, visit your doctor immediately.

If you are worried about asbestos at home or in general, you can discuss your concerns with Asbestoswise or the Safety Agency and Asbestos Eradication.

Fibrocement cladding can be tested to see if it contains asbestos. Contact the National Testing Authority Association (NATA).

Asbestos in the Ancient World

Asbestos occurs naturally on every continent in the world. Archaeologists found asbestos fibers in debris dating from the Stone Age, approximately 750,000 years ago. It is believed that in the early 4000 BC, long fibers such as asbestos were used for axes on lamps and candles.

Between 2000-3000 BC, the embalmed Egyptian pharaoh's body was wrapped in asbestos cloth to protect the body from damage. In Finland, clay pots go back to 2500 BC. contains asbestos fiber, which is believed to also be able to strengthen the pot and make it fire resistant. Around 456 BC, Herodotus, a classical Greek historian, referred to the use of asbestos shrouds that wrapped around the dead before their bodies were thrown into piles of wood to prevent their ashes from mixing with the fire itself.

Others believe that the original word can be traced back to the Latin idiom, amiantus, which means it is not dirty, or not polluted, because the ancient Romans were said to have woven asbestos fibers into materials such as cloth which were then sewn to make tablecloths and napkins . These fabrics are said to be cleansed by throwing them into a blazing fire, from where they came out miraculously unharmed and basically whiter than when they entered.

While the Greeks and Romans also exploited the unique characteristics of asbestos, they also documented the harmful effects on those who mine silk material from ancient stone mines. The Greek geographer Strabo noted "lung disease" in slaves who weave asbestos into cloth. Roman historians, naturalists and philosophers, Pliny the Elder, wrote about "the disease of slaves," and also actually described the use of thin membranes from the goat or sheep bladder used by slave miners as early respirators in an effort to protect them from inhaling harmful asbestos fibers when they work.

History of asbestos unison.org.uk

Asbestos in the Middle Ages and Outside

Approximately 755, King Charlemagne of France has a tablecloth made of asbestos to prevent it from burning during accidental fires that often occur during parties or celebrations. Like the ancient Greeks, he also wrapped his general's body that died in the asbestos shroud. At the end of the first millennium, cremation cloths, mats and axes for temple lights were made from chrysotile asbestos from Cyprus and tremolite asbestos from northern Italy.

In 1095, French, German and Italian knights who fought in the First Crusade used slingshots, called trebuchets, to throw lighted tar and tar bags wrapped in asbestos bags on the city walls during their siege. In 1280, Marco Polo wrote about clothing made by Mongolians from "cloth that would not burn." Polo visited an asbestos mine in China to deny the myth that asbestos came from hairy lizard hair.

Chrysotile asbestos was mined during the reign of Peter the Great, Tsarist Russia from 1682 to 1725. Wallets made of asbestos refractory, which are now part of the London Natural History Museum collection, were brought to England by Benjamin Franklin during his first visit there while still young. man in 1725. Paper made from asbestos was found in Italy in the early 1700s and in the 1800s, the Italian government used asbestos fibers in its banknotes. The Parisian Fire Brigade in the mid-1850s wore jackets and helmets made of asbestos.

Commercialization of Asbestos

Asbestos production was not an industry that developed until the late 1800s, when the start of the Industrial Revolution helped maintain strong and stable industrial growth. That's when practical and commercial use of asbestos, with various applications, became widespread. When mining and making asbestos explodes, so does the health effects that are harmful to those who mine and purify minerals, and those who work with them.

Asbestos resistance to chemicals, heat, water and electricity makes it an excellent insulator for steam engines, turbines, boilers, ovens, and electric generators that support the Industrial Revolution. The softness of asbestos makes it an important building, binding and strengthening commodities.