One of the services that we offer here at Remtech Environmental is asbestos abatement, which involves removing any asbestos from your home in order to keep you and your loved ones safe from this material’s damaging effects. While most people these days know that asbestos is incredibly harmful, not everyone knows the details of why this is so. Our team has put together this article to fill in that knowledge gap–read on if you want a better idea of what exactly makes asbestos so damaging.
What is Asbestos?
Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral with a structure composed of millions of fine, fibers packed very closely together. This dense crystal structure makes asbestos resistant to heat, corrosion, and even electricity. Obviously these qualities are highly useful, which is why it was used so extensively, and why it is still included in many household products (though modern manufacturing standards require this material to make up less than 1% of the product’s total mass).
Why is Asbestos Dangerous?
What makes asbestos dangerous is its individual fibers, which can easily break off from the main sheet in the form of dust. When asbestos dust is inhaled, its crystal fibers, which are as sharp as needles, get stuck in the lungs and other body tissues, and they remain there permanently. The crystals are so sharp that they can rupture your cells’ nuclei and damage the DNA inside–which eventually leads to cancer, as the damaged cells reproduce and spread to other areas of the body.