Still quite a short time ago, asbestos used to be applauded for its great qualities such as resistance to heat, fire, chemicals or wear. All this made it a very popular substance.
For decades it was used in making thousands of products, from building material to clothes and toys, until about 50 years ago when it became obvious that it was also poisonous. What is asbestos poisoning? A lot of industrial fields have been making use of asbestos especially for its durability, which is the material’s most important advantage and disadvantage at the same time. When asbestos gets into a human body, there is no means for the body to get rid of this substance.
When asbestos is part of some material, as long as it stays in it, it is harmless. What is dangerous for humans is breathing in the tiny needle-like asbestos fibers, when they become airborne. But the first symptoms of asbestos poisoning, such as dry cough, chest tightness or short breath may be confused with some less dangerous illnesses. Combined with the length of the latency period, the true cause of disease is often discovered too late.
Asbestosis, mesothelioma or lung cancer – these are the most common diseases connected to asbestos poisoning. Asbestosis is caused by the lungs trying to dissolve the asbestos fibers by making acid, scaring the tissue, causing it to harden. Eventually, the capability to breath is considerably limited. Mesothelioma is an cureless type of cancer, affecting the outer lining of the lungs. A person can get mesothelioma from being exposed to asbestos poisoning for just a very short period or even accidentally, which is a major difference from asbestosis. More than 50 percent of the patients dying from asbestos poisoning suffer from asbestos-induced lung cancer. Nevertheless, if the diagnosis is set correctly and the patient begins the treatment early, he/she is quite likely to have an active life for many years after.
Asbestos in Canada Canada used to be one of the main asbestos producers and still supports its use in less harmful variations and mines in Quebec are still operating. Nearly all office and public buildings or schools built before the 1980s employed asbestos for thermal, fire and sound insulation. The people who were most ‘at risk’ were mainly the workers installing asbestos materials, especially in cases where health and safety rules were ignored. Then the dust from the installation process could escape into the air and people were breathing in the poisonous toxins. Canada still hasn’t banned the use of asbestos. Nevertheless, things have changed a little – using asbestos as insulation material has been banned in Ontario in 1973. Local governments have been trying to get rid of this substance from public buildings and any job that involves either installing or removing it is governed by very severe regulations.
Asbestos in Toronto Ontario has strict regulations concerning asbestos in buildings, particularly since 2007. If a landlord finds any suspicious substance deteriorating in the building he owns, he has to present it for examination. If the presence of asbestos is found out, elimination by certified professionals has to take place immediatelly. In case there is a danger that the deterioration may continue, the whole impacted area has to be removed, again under severe safety regulations.
The most common use of asbestos in non-domestic buildings: – insulation on pipes – ceiling tiles – panels boards – cement panels – sprayed coatings on walls – asbestos ropes and cloth – textures coating The most common use of asbestos in residential homes in Toronto: – exterior surfaces: deck undersheeting, roof felt and shingles, window putty – all kinds of insulation – flooring: vinyl asbestos sheets, tiles and undersheeting – interior surface: sprayed-on acoustic ceilings, acoustic tiles – appliances: water heaters, range hoods, clothes dryers and dishwashers Asbestos is still not a solved issue. We all still recall the Sunrise Propane blast from last year. Five streets were hit by asbestos debris and 3000 people had to leave their homes until a complete and careful clear up of the place. The danger posed by asbestos is still here and local governments have to keep fighting with it. But the exact scope of this danger is almost impossible to be quantified. One of the reasons why it is so hard is the fact that just 0.5% of asbestos in material is regarded as poisonous.
So if you have any suspicion that your property may have been affected, you should ask for it to be inspected by professionals (the list of such firms in the GTA region is easy to be found). Anyway, people should never try to deal with the suspect material on their own!
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