Asbestos exposure does not usually cause immediate symptoms. The symptoms of asbestos-related diseases, such as breathlessness, a persistent cough, chest pain and fatigue, typically appear only decades after exposure, often 10–40 years or even longer. If you have symptoms and a history of asbestos exposure, talk to a doctor or your occupational health service. Onelab is a laboratory and does not give medical advice.
This article covers how people are exposed to asbestos, which diseases asbestos can cause, why the symptoms are delayed, how the types of asbestos differ in how hazardous they are, and how to avoid exposure during renovation.
How are people exposed to asbestos?
Asbestos exposure means breathing in asbestos fibres. Fibres are released into the air when asbestos-containing material is broken: sanded, drilled, sawn, chiselled or demolished. Intact, undisturbed material is not a hazard, because the fibres stay bound in the material.
Inhaled fibres can travel deep into the lungs and the pleura, the membrane around the lungs, and some of them stay in the body permanently. The health risk grows with the amount and duration of exposure. The people at greatest risk have been those who worked with asbestos for a long time, for example in construction, insulation and shipyard work.
Fibres can also be carried elsewhere: dusty work clothes, tools and poorly cleaned renovation dust can spread fibres into the home and expose other members of the household. That is why demolition work is sealed off and the dust is cleaned up properly.
What diseases can asbestos cause?
Asbestos-related diseases mainly affect the lungs and the pleura. The most important ones are the following.
Asbestosis
Asbestosis is scarring of the lung tissue, a form of pulmonary fibrosis, usually caused by long-term, heavy exposure. It progresses slowly and reduces lung function.
Pleural plaques and pleural thickening
Pleural plaques are calcified or fibrous changes in the pleura. They are the most common sign of asbestos exposure and are often found by chance on an X-ray. Plaques do not usually cause symptoms themselves, but they show that exposure has taken place. More extensive pleural thickening can impair breathing.
Lung cancer
Asbestos increases the risk of lung cancer. Smoking raises the risk considerably, as the combined effect of asbestos and tobacco is much greater than that of either one alone. Stopping smoking is therefore one of the most important things a person exposed to asbestos can do.
Mesothelioma
Mesothelioma is a rare cancer that most often develops in the pleura and sometimes in the lining of the abdomen. Most cases are linked to earlier asbestos exposure, and the time from exposure to illness is typically very long.
Asbestos symptoms: what do the diseases feel like?
Asbestos-related diseases do not have symptoms that are unique to them. The symptoms resemble those of other lung diseases and can include:
- breathlessness that gets worse with exertion
- a persistent cough
- chest pain or a feeling of tightness in the chest
- fatigue and reduced stamina
- weight loss without an obvious cause.
Because the symptoms develop decades later, their cause is not obvious. Tell your doctor if you have worked with asbestos or done demolition work in old buildings. Your occupational health service can help assess work-related exposure.
I was exposed once during a renovation. What should I do?
A single, short exposure, for example after sanding old filler without knowing it contained asbestos, is not an immediate emergency. The risk of asbestos-related disease is linked above all to repeated and long-term exposure. Exposure should still be avoided whenever possible, because no safe level of exposure has been established.
- Stop the work and prevent dust from spreading to other rooms.
- Do not vacuum the dust with an ordinary vacuum cleaner. Clean with a damp cloth and put the waste in a sealed bag.
- Find out whether the material contains asbestos by taking a sample before continuing the work.
- If you are worried or have symptoms, talk to a doctor or your occupational health service.
Safe working practices are described in more detail in the article asbestos and safety.
Are all types of asbestos equally dangerous?
All types of asbestos are classified as carcinogenic, and none of them is considered safe. Asbestos minerals are divided into two groups, and they differ in how hazardous they are.
Is chrysotile dangerous?
Chrysotile, or white asbestos, belongs to the serpentine group and was the most common type of asbestos in building products. Its fibres are curlier and are cleared from the body faster than amphibole fibres, which is why chrysotile is generally considered somewhat less hazardous. Chrysotile is nevertheless carcinogenic and can cause all of the asbestos-related diseases described above.
Is anthophyllite dangerous, and the other amphiboles?
The amphibole asbestos types are crocidolite, amosite, anthophyllite, tremolite and actinolite. Their fibres are straight and needle-like and remain in the lungs for a long time. Amphiboles are generally considered more hazardous than chrysotile, especially with regard to the risk of mesothelioma. Anthophyllite was once also mined in Finland and can be found, for example, in old fillers and compounds. More on the types on the page types of asbestos.
In practice the difference does not change what you should do: if any type of asbestos is detected in a material, it is treated as asbestos-containing.
The best protection is knowing before you renovate
Fibres that have already reached the lungs cannot be removed, so the most important thing is to avoid exposure. If the building was built or renovated before 1994, find out what the materials you plan to demolish contain before you break them. Asbestos cannot be identified by sight, as explained in the article how to identify asbestos, so certainty comes from a sample.
- Identify the materials the renovation affects, such as fillers, tile adhesives, vinyl flooring and boards.
- Take a sample of each different material while wearing protective equipment. Instructions are in the article how to take an asbestos sample.
- Send the sample to the laboratory. Onelab analyses it with a JEOL SEM-EDS electron microscope in accordance with the ISO 22262-1 standard, and the result is sent by email, typically on the day the sample arrives.
- If asbestos is detected, the removal is carried out by a company authorised for asbestos removal work.
Larger renovations and demolition projects often require an on-site asbestos survey, carried out on site by a qualified surveyor. Onelab is a laboratory, and on-site surveys are handled by our sister brand AsbestiPro.
The analysis costs €39.90 + VAT per sample, and the price is the same for 1–100 samples. Orders of more than 100 samples can be priced separately. Postage is not included. You can order the analysis online.