Asbestos-Related Deaths On The Rise in U.S.

By Ramsay Crooks

Published on July 22, 2005

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC, have reported that the current death rate reflects usage levels of asbestos from as long as 40 years ago. Since the dangerous mineral was in use until the late seventies, and diseases such as silicosis and asbestosis can remain dormant for decades, death rates are expected to increase dramatically in the next decade.

Asbestosis, characterized by short breath and a chronic cough, has no known cure and is linked to a heightened risk of cancer. With the recent increase in deaths, asbestosis is now deadlier than other occupational respiratory illnesses such as silicosis and black lung.

Though asbestos is no longer actively used in manufacturing or in products such as insulation, some older factories and buildings still contain asbestos; current occupants and employees are still said to be at risk for asbestos exposure.

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