In another thread I mentioned this issue, here is what I posted to a dog mailing list earlier, it is of course aimed towards dogs but the asbestos section in very important for humans as well:
Cancers in dogs, risks.
Lawn chemicals etc:
On the cancer issue I read about lawn chemicals, this is a subject I've spoken out against in past years and was always a concern with me. I never use any kind of lawn chemicals and my dogs never come in contact with them. This includes herbicides/weed kilkers/Roundup etc, pesticides, lawn care products, ant and roach killer, snail bait, rat/mouse bait and so forth.
Flea products:
My house flooring is mainly porcellain tile, some wood, and no carpeting, since I have not had any fleas in many, many years I never need to use flea products of any kind either. They are difficult to get established because the new born fleas need the adult fleas' droppings for food, carpeting is one of THE worst things to have and creates the perfect place for fleas.
I do not trust these flea chemicals either, especially that Frontline- a new vet I tried a number of years ago applied some of that stuff to my puppy and right after that I had some wierd sinus thing going on, it definitely was affecting my sinus even though I could smell nothing.
Asbestos:
Another serious cancer causing agent is asbestos, most people have no idea how many consumer products were produced that had asbestos in them, everything from vinyl flooring and ironing board covers to kitchen oven mittens and attic insulation had this in it.
Probably the worst offender is currently in millions of home and business attics in the form of small granules of puffed up looking stuff called vermiculite.
Vermiculite was mined in Libby Montana by the W.R. Grace Company for decades, it was unfortunately contaminated with the worst form of asbestos there is and Grace Co mined and sold this material for attic insulation knowing full well it was contaminated with asbestos. Long story short, their insulation was installed by homeowners in millions of attics as a do-it-yourself product sold in hardware stores, the material contaminated the stores, peopel's cars, delivery trucks, railroad cars, every terminal the freight trains full of it passed, and the entire town of Libby was severely contaminated.
Grace Co. decided to file for bankruptcy protection and then returned anew free of any further liability from lawsuits.
What this means for all of us is that this insulation in the attic tends to settle down into the walls, releasing particles of asbestos through light switches, ceiling lamps, cracks, and if anyone goes in the attic it gets on their clothing, and workers installing wiring, A/C ducts etc contaminate the entire home as well from their work, their clothing is also contaminated and transferred to their vehicles and homes.
Many housewives and kids in Libby Mt contracted lung diseases and cancers due to the husband/father bringing home asbestos covered work clothes which were then washed in the washing machine and dryer and contaminated the home.
The asbestos eventually winds up on the floor- where the dogs live the majority of their lives, vacuuming puts it back in the air as the fibers go through ordinary vacuum bags and filters.
While asbestos is usually associated with lung cancers, the fibers penetrate tissues in other ways, there is some evidence that it can cause or contribute to other kinds of cancers, NO exposure is considered safe and various studies on this use animals which develop the various diseases they test.
People would be wise to at least check their attics and find out if there is any of this up there, there are pictures on the web of it, it's a granular soft, light almost cork-like material about the size of pencil erasers with some shiny silvery colored surfaces to it, you can't mistake this stuff for any other kind of attic insulation. It was sold under the brand name of "Zonolite" and there could be paper bags left behind in the attic with that name on them, I found an empty bag in my art gallery attic.
http://www.isolationchaleurconfort.c...3_zonolite.jpg
The thing is don't panic if you find some, there are only two courses of action you can take: removal can cost around $20,000, encapsulation and leaving it undisturbed is the only other option and the one usually recommended- leave it undisturbed but do not use the attic for storage of any kind, do not enter the attic again, seal/caulk all cracks, gaps, holes no matter how small between the attic and living space below.
I won't make this longer with more details, there's plenty of resources on the web and a DVD about the Libby Mt issue, but I wanted to make people aware of this insulation since it is everywhere and a source of long-term exposure to a toxic material that simply can't be ignored and it's one that most people never knew about beyond the usual steam pipe coverings, older car brake shoes and floor tiles, but it's been put into hundreds of common products used in the home, even plaster, spackle and cement used on the walls, house paint, some clothing, older toasters and heaters, furnaces, roofing materials, ductwork, adhesives, artificial "snow" people sprinkled out on the floor under their Christmas trees and even potting soil used for house plants!
The attic insulation however is probably the most likely and largest source you will find in today's homes.
Cancers in dogs, risks.
Lawn chemicals etc:
On the cancer issue I read about lawn chemicals, this is a subject I've spoken out against in past years and was always a concern with me. I never use any kind of lawn chemicals and my dogs never come in contact with them. This includes herbicides/weed kilkers/Roundup etc, pesticides, lawn care products, ant and roach killer, snail bait, rat/mouse bait and so forth.
Flea products:
My house flooring is mainly porcellain tile, some wood, and no carpeting, since I have not had any fleas in many, many years I never need to use flea products of any kind either. They are difficult to get established because the new born fleas need the adult fleas' droppings for food, carpeting is one of THE worst things to have and creates the perfect place for fleas.
I do not trust these flea chemicals either, especially that Frontline- a new vet I tried a number of years ago applied some of that stuff to my puppy and right after that I had some wierd sinus thing going on, it definitely was affecting my sinus even though I could smell nothing.
Asbestos:
Another serious cancer causing agent is asbestos, most people have no idea how many consumer products were produced that had asbestos in them, everything from vinyl flooring and ironing board covers to kitchen oven mittens and attic insulation had this in it.
Probably the worst offender is currently in millions of home and business attics in the form of small granules of puffed up looking stuff called vermiculite.
Vermiculite was mined in Libby Montana by the W.R. Grace Company for decades, it was unfortunately contaminated with the worst form of asbestos there is and Grace Co mined and sold this material for attic insulation knowing full well it was contaminated with asbestos. Long story short, their insulation was installed by homeowners in millions of attics as a do-it-yourself product sold in hardware stores, the material contaminated the stores, peopel's cars, delivery trucks, railroad cars, every terminal the freight trains full of it passed, and the entire town of Libby was severely contaminated.
Grace Co. decided to file for bankruptcy protection and then returned anew free of any further liability from lawsuits.
What this means for all of us is that this insulation in the attic tends to settle down into the walls, releasing particles of asbestos through light switches, ceiling lamps, cracks, and if anyone goes in the attic it gets on their clothing, and workers installing wiring, A/C ducts etc contaminate the entire home as well from their work, their clothing is also contaminated and transferred to their vehicles and homes.
Many housewives and kids in Libby Mt contracted lung diseases and cancers due to the husband/father bringing home asbestos covered work clothes which were then washed in the washing machine and dryer and contaminated the home.
The asbestos eventually winds up on the floor- where the dogs live the majority of their lives, vacuuming puts it back in the air as the fibers go through ordinary vacuum bags and filters.
While asbestos is usually associated with lung cancers, the fibers penetrate tissues in other ways, there is some evidence that it can cause or contribute to other kinds of cancers, NO exposure is considered safe and various studies on this use animals which develop the various diseases they test.
People would be wise to at least check their attics and find out if there is any of this up there, there are pictures on the web of it, it's a granular soft, light almost cork-like material about the size of pencil erasers with some shiny silvery colored surfaces to it, you can't mistake this stuff for any other kind of attic insulation. It was sold under the brand name of "Zonolite" and there could be paper bags left behind in the attic with that name on them, I found an empty bag in my art gallery attic.
http://www.isolationchaleurconfort.c...3_zonolite.jpg
The thing is don't panic if you find some, there are only two courses of action you can take: removal can cost around $20,000, encapsulation and leaving it undisturbed is the only other option and the one usually recommended- leave it undisturbed but do not use the attic for storage of any kind, do not enter the attic again, seal/caulk all cracks, gaps, holes no matter how small between the attic and living space below.
I won't make this longer with more details, there's plenty of resources on the web and a DVD about the Libby Mt issue, but I wanted to make people aware of this insulation since it is everywhere and a source of long-term exposure to a toxic material that simply can't be ignored and it's one that most people never knew about beyond the usual steam pipe coverings, older car brake shoes and floor tiles, but it's been put into hundreds of common products used in the home, even plaster, spackle and cement used on the walls, house paint, some clothing, older toasters and heaters, furnaces, roofing materials, ductwork, adhesives, artificial "snow" people sprinkled out on the floor under their Christmas trees and even potting soil used for house plants!
The attic insulation however is probably the most likely and largest source you will find in today's homes.
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