Mesothelioma

It is hard enough for adults to have to worry about contracting mesothelioma from the harmful things that they work with – but to learn that our children may be at risk is something that none of us expected. The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization has performed tests and have learned that there is a harmful amount of asbestos in the usual toys that they play with. Many toys have already been pulled off the shelves.

Asbestos, when inhaled is extremely difficult for the body to break down, resulting in a sustained irritation within the body’s internal structures. Children in particular, are at a specific risk because they are often less discriminatory about what products they may ingest or inhale. Once within a child’s body, the asbestos inflammation may cause a harmful scar tissue over several years, ultimately leading to the terminal cancer that we call mesothelioma.

Because the health complications that result from asbestos exposures take many years to manifest, a childhood exposure could potentially see a person develop mesothelioma in their twenties or thirties. Typically prognoses for mesothelioma are between 12 and 18 months, as the cancer slowly collapses the lungs and suffocates the patient. This and other health complications are the devastating consequences of an innocent childhood exposure to asbestos.

It is upsetting to hear that our children could now be at risk of this deadly disease. We all should make sure that we stay aware of the things that could potentially cause our children future harm.