Imagine a group of murderers, terrorizing the world under the guise of protecting our safety. After thousands of unnecessary deaths, someone finally stands up to the killers and sends all but one to jail. Why leave this one free?
Certain people claim he’s less dangerous than his associates. He really does protect us and is harmless if closely monitored. While others rise and prove their ability to help us without senseless slaughter, he remains as a constant threat, unnerving those who work near him.
Hypotheticals aside, this is a real situation many encounter every day. Approximately 125 million people are exposed to asbestos in the workplace every year. Asbestos is a known carcinogen, causing respiratory issues including mesothelioma, lung cancer and asbestosis.
After exposure, cancers like mesothelioma can take decades to develop. With no warning signs until the disease progressed too far, it is a death sentence to nearly all who suffer. Radical surgeries involve removing a lung or its lining, which typically prolongs life rather than saves it.
The fiber was originally used because of its flame, chemical and sound proofing abilities until more reports and information surfaced, linking asbestos to many health concerns. By the mid 1980s, much more care was taken in handling the substance while making an effort to eradicate it from previous uses, including insulation.
Asbestos exists in six forms, five of which are banned because they’re more dangerous. The sixth, chrysotile or white asbestos, is banned in more than 50 countries but still imported and exported all over the world. No evidence exists claiming it is less potent than its family members, yet people claim its safe to use.
For more than 20 years, College Ramazzini in Italy has called for a worldwide ban of all types of asbestos. Four separate pleas were issued, detailing how research shows all forms are human carcinogens and all can cause many types of cancer, including lung, ovarian, laryngeal and mesothelioma.
Occupational asbestos exposure kills more than 107,000 each year.
More than 100,000 people die each year from exposure to a substance that has a synthetic substitute. More than 100,000 people die each year without reason.
Let’s put an end to this fibrous killer.
Footnotes
Collegium Ramazzini. (2010). Asbestos is still with us: Repeat call for a universal ban. Archives of Environmental and Occupational Health. [Link]
Landrigan, P. J. (2012). A global ban on asbestos: Collegium Ramazzini. ADAO. [Link]
WHO. (2010). Asbestos: Elimination of asbestos-related diseases. Media Centre. [Link]