The federal government recently denied a petition calling for increased reporting on asbestos imports. In the petition, environmental groups asked the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to require asbestos importers and manufacturers to publicly report all asbestos-related activities.
Asbestos trust funds: Are you eligible to receive compensation?
What if you were able to receive hundreds of thousands of dollars from a trust fund that has already been set up? For some victims of mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases, this might be a reality.
In the 1970s, scientists discovered asbestos was a primary cause of mesothelioma. As a result, many asbestos companies were forced to declare bankruptcy in the proceeding decades following an influx of lawsuits. Many of the companies that went bankrupt set up trust funds to compensate victims of asbestos exposure.
Asbestos still a risk, but other hazards also endanger your lungs
If you work construction, you are already aware of the common dangers you face every day. Falling from heights, objects striking you and electrocution are just a few of the hazards you try to avoid. However, you may not consider that cancer is also a serious possibility for construction workers.
Perhaps you wear personal protection equipment to arrest your fall, to prevent particles from getting into your eyes or to protect your hearing from the loud machinery you work around. What you may not realize is that the dust you inhale every day may be full of harmful toxins that are already at work in your lungs potentially cutting your life short. In fact, construction workers are 50 percent more likely to develop some form of lung cancer than those working in other industries.
Common sources and symptoms of benzene exposure
Benzene is a colorless liquid chemical that is described as having a sweet smell. However, it is one of the most dangerous and most prevalent chemicals on earth.
According to the Center for Disease Control, benzene exposure is proven to cause cancer in humans. As a result, it is important to know where benzene exposure occurs and how to recognize you have been exposed.
Making the holidays easier for caregivers
Families in Missouri and Illinois generally make it a point to be together during the holiday season. For caregivers looking after loved ones with health conditions such as mesothelioma, however, it may not be possible to plan or attend a gathering. This is because of the stress of providing care. Furthermore, trying to host a holiday gathering may be more than a patient and caregiver can handle. In some cases, the person with the health problem won't feel up to attending a traditional holiday event.
However, there are things that family members can do to ensure that everyone can be together for a holiday celebration. For instance, they can offer to take over the process of planning, preparing and cleaning up after the event. If necessary, the person who usually hosts the event can still participate in a supervisory role. Depending on how the sick family member feels, it may be a good idea to keep the guest list to a minimum.
Asbestos exposure still a frequent threat in many states
Being one of the most polluted states, Illinois sees a high number of fatalities from diseases linked to asbestos exposure. In fact, it comes in seventh in a list of the 15 worst states. These states saw a combined total of over 100,000 asbestos-related deaths between 1999 and 2013. The following is a brief summary of that list.
Minnesota, North Carolina and Wisconsin form the bottom three, reporting between 4,800 and 5,300 deaths. In North Carolina especially, many miners and manufacturing workers are exposed. Its tobacco policy, according to some, also leaves something to be desired. Next are Massachusetts and Virginia, two states associated with their shipbuilding industries. Shipbuilders are known to use asbestos freely.
Missouri resident charged with felony DUI after fatal crash
A 28-year-old Missouri resident has been charged with felony drunk driving in connection with an Oct. 20 accident in Boone County that claimed the life of one of his two passengers and left the other seriously injured. The Columbia man was ordered held without bond because he is considered a flight risk and a danger to the community.
Police believe that the man lost control of his Subaru Impreza sedan in the vicinity of Blackfoot Road and North Stadium Boulevard near Cosmo Park at approximately 11:00 p.m. Accident investigators later concluded that the car had left the ground at a high rate of speed before striking several trees and coming to a rest. A 28-year-old man who had been traveling in the rear of the car was pronounced dead at the scene. Paramedics transported the woman sitting in the front passenger seat to a nearby hospital.
What to do if you suspect a drunk driver is in your midst
If an Illinois driver imbibes alcohol then gets behind the wheel of a car to drive, it doesn't necessarily mean he or she will be illegally operating a motor vehicle. Alcohol may affect your body a lot differently than it affects another person. In fact, if you drink a particular type of alcohol on one occasion, it may affect you differently than the same kind of drink on another day.
Many factors have an impact on how your bloodstream absorbs alcohol and how it affects your brain, such as whether or not you were eating and drinking water while you imbibed, how much you weigh and, of course, how much alcohol you happened to have consumed. You can control your own choices, but there may little you can do to change another person's actions. You are at great risk for injury if a drunk driver is sharing your roadway.
Know the signs of mesothelioma
Many people in Missouri and Southern Illinois are diagnosed with mesothelioma each year. While there are some screening tests for people with known exposure to asbestos, such as X-rays or CT scans, most cases of the disease are discovered when a patient visits his or her doctor with symptoms of the disease.
Medical experts recommend that individuals who have been exposed to asbestos learn about the potential signs of mesothelioma. In most cases, these signs will end up being caused by some other medical condition, but it's important for people to be on the lookout for all new symptoms and report them to their doctors just to be safe.
An overview of malign asbestos-related diseases
Exposure to asbestos, especially to high amounts of it over a long period of time, can result in certain malign diseases. The most frequent are discussed below so that workers in Illinois are aware of the risks. Asbestos is, after all, the single largest cause of occupational cancers to date in the U.S.
Mesothelioma, the most frequently occurring asbestos-related disease, causes more than 3,000 deaths every year in this country. The cancer develops along the mesothelium, or thin protective lining, of the lungs, stomach, heart and testicles. Each of these types will exhibit different symptoms, but symptoms they all share include chest or abdominal pain and shortness of breath.
