Toxic hazards and Risk Asbestos Consumers Essay

Toxic hazards and Risk Asbestos Consumers - Essay Example (Pass, 2008)The paper shall look at the hazardous levels of this substance and how dangerous it is to the public. The reason why this chemical threat was chosen was that there are certain health related complications that can arise out of exposure to this substance. There are series of governmental and non governmental bodies that have addressed the issue of asbestos as a chemical threat today. For instance taking the example of EPA; the latter body has formed smaller groups to tackle the asbestos challenge and some of them include the Office of Air and Radiation Planning Standards. This Office is in charge of ensuring that air quality within the US is in order. This implies that the latter body is also in charge of the all the asbestos standards allowable in the atmosphere. Additionally, the Office of Prevention of Pesticides and Toxic substances is also accredited with the standards for training professionals exclusively in the field of asbestos. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration group is largely responsible for ensuring that workers are protected against asbestos use and that overall safety plans in various companies comply with regulations. Additionally, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry is largely responsible for ensuring that the public is informed about the risk of exposure to this product. It is also in charge of the health care concerns that can arise as result of exposure to asbestos. Consequently, as it can be seen from the latter agencies, the issue of asbestos as a hazard is a cause for concern given the fact that most of these agencies have been given task of dealing with it. (OSHA, 2008) Section 2 It should be noted that exposure to this chemical threat can present very severe consequences in terms of one's health. It may include any of the following categories of health threats; Mesothelioma Lung cancer Asbestosis Mesothelioma is a form of cancer that attacks the lining of sensitive organs in the body such as the heart, lungs, chest, abdomen etc. This form of cancer is particularly difficult to detect because most of its symptoms usually show up years after exposure. Lung cancer is also another health related concern and is one of the leading causes of death with regard to asbestos. This form of health complication usually attacks those people who work in asbestos rich areas such as mines, mills, constrictions etc. However, even the general public may be affected by it when air quality standards fall below par. When one suffers from lung cancer, they usually begin coughing, feeling chest pains, experiencing anemia and shortness of breath. (Pass, 2008) The other notorious health complication associated with exposure to asbestos is asbestosis. This is a disease of the lungs that is categorized as a long term one. Most of the people who suffer from this disease are those ones who inhale asbestos fiber. What happen is that the fibers lodge passages in the lungs and prevent the lung from fully performing its functions. When one is suffering from asbestosis, then they are likely to depict crackling sounds from the lungs, shortness of breath and inhalation problems, this form of attack is particularly detrimental owing to the fact that there are currently no know cures for the disease. In fact, the disease can lead to a very slow but painful death. All in all, when people are highly exposed