The Greeks termed asbestos the “miracle mineral” because it was soft, supple and could withstand heat. Miracle, indeed! Unfortunately, scientists have since shown that extended periods of exposure to asbestos can be deadly. You have to wonder how many of the Greeks fell ill late in life due to their exposure to this “miracle mineral.”Around the end of World War II, asbestos became very popular with manufacturers and builders because of the same principles known to the Greeks. Asbestos is heat-resistant, fire-retardant, has tremendous sound absorption qualities and is very strong. Asbestos has been used in such products as brake shoes for vehicles, joint compound, stage curtains, interior fire doors, insulation, vinyl flooring and adhesives, fireproof clothing for fire fighters and the list goes on.

Prior to this, even dating back to the Greeks, physicians were starting to see a correlation between asbestos workers and medical conditions that were affecting their lungs. In 1898, the British Chief Inspector of Factories indicated asbestos workers ‘easily demonstrated’ health risks. In 1932, the U.S. Bureau of Mines sent a report to Eagle-Picher (one of the largest producers of asbestos) stating that “it is now known that asbestos dust is one of the most dangerous dusts to which man is exposed.”

These types of reports continued until the late 1980s when the U.S. EPA issued its Asbestos Ban and Phase Out Rule. Since then, buildings and products containing asbestos have been reclaimed and the allowable limits on asbestos in the workplace have been regulated to a greatly decreased level. Removing asbestos from buildings now requires heavy protection for both the workers and the area being reclaimed.

Unfortunately, for thousands of people employed in asbestos manufacturing plants and other industries where asbestos has been heavily used, the regulations may have come too late. It may take years, even decades, for the signs and symptoms of asbestos poisoning, or mesothelioma, to appear.

While the asbestos fibers are amazingly beautiful - resembling the snowy white beard of an aging southern gentleman - when inhaled, the sharp fibers (similar to fiberglass) imbed themselves into the lining around the lungs or abdomen and cause the deadly disease known as Mesothelioma.

Asbestos was called the “miracle mineral” by the Greeks especially because it could withstand heat. Due to this characteristic of this element, it was widely used in the construction industry until the late 1900s. Until recently, the bad effects of using this material weren’t known to the public, but when it came to light, it was too late. By the time the authorities found out that it was a killer, countless number of innocents had lost their lives in the fight against asbestos poisoning. The inhalation of asbestos fibers commonly causes mesothelioma, lung cancer, and also asbestosis.Asbestos has killed many millions in the past couple of centuries since its heat resistant properties were discovered and asbestos was mined in many countries. It was very late when the health departments in all the countries found out that their miracle mineral was actually a killer mineral that had claimed the lives of millions of people. Many cases have been filed over the decades against those responsible for causing countless number of people to have lost their lives and health by making them work in asbestos mines and mills. The estimated total cost of the asbestos litigations in the United States of America alone is over 250 billion dollars.

It was widely used in the construction industry all over the world as it was heat resistant, flexible, durable, and even chemical resistant. But to decide whether the use of a certain material should be made legal or illegal depends on weighing its pros and cons. In this case, the cons far outweigh the pros. Inhalation of asbestos fibers has sparked the birth of a cancer called mesothelioma in humans which according to the Institute of Medicine (IOM) had claimed the lives of almost one hundred thousand Americans in 1999 alone. They recommended considering it as an epidemic of the worst kind.

The federal court houses in the United States have been dealing with claims by asbestos victims and their families for decades. The court houses are stunned by the number of asbestos law related claims which range in the hundreds of thousands. What does bother the court houses in the United States is the number of asbestos related cases that they will be seeing in the future as asbestos related problems surface only after 20-50 years of exposure. The Fairness of Asbestos Compensation Act which was brought out in 1999 was used to determine if the numerous plaintiffs who were filing law suits were indeed suffering from asbestos related illness.

The asbestos litigation is the most expensive and longest mass tort in the history of US court houses. The numbers of defendants are almost 10,400 but the numbers of claimants are almost a million with the number growing with each passing day. With the number of such litigations piling up in court houses all over the United States, the country issued the Asbestos Ban and Phase Out Rule in 1989. Many countries followed this path in banning its import and use to safe guard their people. Though developed countries have banned its use many developing countries are still using it.