What is the Truth About Asbestos?
It may seem like asbestos dangers are lurking under every corner. While paranoia isn’t the best way to approach the topic of asbestos, it isn’t entirely wrong that asbestos is a notorious material (it’s everywhere!). In fact, the more we learn about asbestos over the years, the more we become aware of its many health risks and exposure concerns. But despite how seriously we need to take asbestos, it’s also important to separate fact from fiction. To do that, let’s explore five common myths about asbestos.
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If you may have been exposed to asbestos, speak with your healthcare provider about tests and screening to help detect the presence of asbestos fibers and asbestos-related diseases.
Myth 1: Asbestos is exclusively found in older buildings.
Undoubtedly, older homes carry a high probability of containing asbestos. In the construction industry, asbestos was a favorite material in all kinds of applications, mainly because of its durability, and resistance to fire and weather decay. Because of this, you could reasonably expect that everything from ceiling tiles, shingles, insulation, paints, carpet, flooring tiles, and cement contained asbestos.
However, the myth is that only the “old” buildings contain asbestos. There’s no doubt that old buildings, such as those from the 1920s contained high levels of asbestos. But we don’t have to go back a century to find homes and buildings with asbestos. In fact, most homes constructed all the way up to 1980 contain asbestos. According to nationwide statistics, New York has the oldest median home age at 63 years old, with the Carolinas tied for the youngest at 32. Despite New York having the oldest median home age, the states with the largest percentage of homes constructed during the era of asbestos use are found primarily in the Midwest.
Despite the fact that asbestos mining has been discontinued in the United States, nations like Russia and China continue to mine this material. Products that contain asbestos from these countries end up being imported into America. Some ongoing commercial uses of asbestos include roofing compounds or brake pads. While asbestos is regulated and banned in many applications, it certainly isn’t exclusive to old buildings.
Nearly every building constructed before the mid 1980s contained an asbestos product or material of some kind.
Myth 2: You can determine whether a material contains asbestos simply by looking at it.
It is true that asbestos carries some specific visual features. In fact, the two categories of asbestos: serpentine and amphibole have to do with the shape of the mineral’s fibers. Even the various types of asbestos within these two categories can all be identified based on their color. However, this is not always the case once the asbestos is taken from a raw material and put into various kinds of materials. As mentioned earlier, asbestos can be found in products like cement, but you wouldn’t be able to detect that simply by looking at it.
Asbestos may look different depending on whether it’s used in dry materials like vinyl or wet materials like paint. Other materials, such as clay, can contain asbestos because of contamination. Because the mineral talcum is normally close to naturally occurring asbestos, it can contain asbestos, even if you can’t see it with the naked eye.
Many asbestos fibers are microscopic and can’t be seen by the naked eye. One billion could fit in a square inch.
Myth 3: The mere presence of asbestos in a building will inevitably result in health problems.
The presence of asbestos is cause for concern, but may not automatically be considered dangerous. When asbestos is present within various materials in an old home or building, it can generally be considered harmless. What makes asbestos harmful is when it is exposed or damaged. This can happen in homes that have experienced flood or wind damage due to a hurricane, or when a renovation is underway.
Asbestos-containing materials that break apart can expose the fibers, and those fibers can be spread throughout the house and into our bodies. While no safe level of asbestos exposure exists, the likelihood of long-term damage and life-threatening diseases attributed to asbestos exposure is greatly increased in the case of long-term exposure, compared to short-term.
Asbestos must be inhaled or ingested to cause health problems. But it has no taste or smell, so you may not know you’re breathing it.
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Quickly and easily find out how you were exposed by searching W.A.R.D., the largest asbestos database on the planet.
FREE SEARCH >Myth: 4 Only those who work directly with asbestos are susceptible to its harmful effects.
Unfortunately, just because someone does not work directly with asbestos does not mean there is no susceptibility to its harmful effects. Not only is it possible for asbestos exposure to occur because of its presence in a home’s construction, but it’s also possible in the case of what’s called second-hand asbestos exposure.
This happens when someone comes into contact with asbestos and carries it on their body, tools, or vehicle, exposing others. Second-hand exposure is not an isolated occurrence either; it accounts for 1 in 5 asbestos illnesses worldwide. Since asbestos fibers have no taste or smell, second-hand exposure is an overlooked or unknown concern for many people.
Second-hand asbestos exposure is real. 1 in 5 people with asbestos diseases never worked around it.
Second-hand asbestos exposure (Secondary Asbestos Exposure)
Asbestos fibers have no taste or smell, and can be microscopic, so you may not realize you were breathing them.
Unfortunately, many workers’ families and other household members were exposed to asbestos as well, as asbestos was brought home daily in neighborhoods across the U.S. on work-clothing.
This is often known as secondary or second-hand asbestos exposure (or domestic / household family asbestos exposure). In studies of asbestos disease, 1 in 5 cases of asbestos exposure were caused by secondary asbestos exposure.1
But spouses and children can also receive a share of the $30 Billion in asbestos trust compensation if they were exposed to asbestos brought into the house or family vehicle by a worker.
Myth 5: Being a non-smoker eliminates the risk of asbestos-related illnesses.
Asbestos and cigarettes have a lot in common. Both are detrimental to a person’s health, specifically lung disease. Tobacco is the largest singular cause attributed to lung cancer and the leading cause of preventable death in the United States. However, asbestos is the most significant occupational risk for lung cancer. However, while smoking can highly increase the likelihood of lung cancer in relation to asbestos exposure it does not mean that non-smokers are without risk.
In fact, people who smoke but have not been exposed to asbestos have a lower risk of developing lung cancer than people who do not smoke but have been exposed to asbestos, even by second-hand asbestos exposure. It is important to note that even those who have a lifelong history of smoking can still be entitled to financial compensation related to asbestos exposure.
| Even lifelong smokers can collect compensation for asbestos damage. | |
 | Many of our clients believed they weren’t eligible to file an asbestos lawsuit because they were cigarette and cigar smokers. This isn’t true under the laws of many states. Our database contains the medical evidence needed to show that smokers who are exposed to asbestos are far more likely to develop cancer than smokers who weren’t exposed to asbestos. Cigarettes and asbestos are far more dangerous than cigarettes or asbestos. |
| Even lifelong smokers can collect compensation for asbestos damage. |
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| Many of our clients believed they weren’t eligible to file an asbestos lawsuit because hey were cigarette and cigar smokers. This isn’t true under the laws of many states. Our database contains the medical evidence needed to show that smokers who are exposed to asbestos are far more likely to develop cancer than smokers who weren’t exposed to asbestos. Cigarettes and asbestos are far more dangerous than cigarettes or asbestos. |
What to Make of These Myths?
The five myths explored here are especially important for one reason: they show that the truth related to asbestos exposure is more serious than we might expect, not less. The more research and time devoted to understanding the health effects of asbestos exposure, the more we realize the unintended consequences and damage that can come, even decades down the road.
If you or someone you love is concerned about asbestos exposure, reach out to a medical professional for an answer. Asbestos-related illnesses can be expensive to treat, but you may be entitled to financial compensation. Reach out to the folks at AsbestosClaims.law for help today!
AsbestosClaims.Law
For Justinian C. Lane, getting compensation for asbestos victims is personal.
Justinian’s grandparents and his father all worked with asbestos in their younger years and died from asbestos-related cancers in their later years.
At the time of each of their deaths, no one in Justinian’s family knew that they were eligible to file an asbestos lawsuit and to seek compensation from the asbestos trusts.
Because no one in Justinian’s family knew their options, they never received any compensation for the death of their loved ones.
If you believe that you or your family member’s injury was related to asbestos exposure, you could be entitled to significant compensation.
This is money you could use to cover the costs of asbestos removal services, pay for medical treatment, and preemptively protect your physical well-being.
There are also asbestos trusts that offer compensation much more quickly and easily (without filing a lawsuit.)
If you’d like help with filing a claim, please get in touch by email at [email protected],or call or text us at (833) 4-ASBESTOS (427-2378) or (206) 455-9190. We’ll listen to your story and explain your options. And we never charge for anything unless you receive money in your pocket.
In addition to legal claims, veterans disability, social security and employment protection like workers compensation, FELA and The Jones Act for maritime workers, there are asbestos trusts that have been set up to compensate those harmed by asbestos without having to file a lawsuit.
There is no risk or cost to speak with one of our staff about your asbestos litigation. There are no fees unless you receive money.
If you have any additional questions or concerns related to asbestos, check out our website and YouTube page for videos, infographics and answers to your questions about asbestos, including health and safety, asbestos testing, removing asbestos from your home and building, and legal information about compensation for asbestos injuries.
Introducing the largest database of asbestos information on the planet.
W.A.R.D., which stands for the Worldwide Asbestos Research Database, helps clients to narrow down when and where they may have been exposed, as well as which products may still contain asbestos. W.A.R.D. will also help indicate compensation types and how much a person may be entitled to.
1 Tompa E, Kalcevich C, McLeod C, Lebeau M, Song C, McLeod K, et al. The economic burden of lung cancer and mesothelioma due to occupational and para-occupational asbestos exposure. Occup Environ Med 2017; 74: 816-22.