아래 내용은 The Diplomat의 10월 9일자 기사입니다.
싱가포르에 석면 사용을 금지하고부터 35년이 지났지만, 석면암인 악성중피종의 발생이 계속해서 증가하고 있습니다. 1980년 5명에서 2019년 110명으로 늘어났습니다.
하지만, 젋은 사람들은 석면의 존재와 위험성에 대하 아는 사람이 많지 않습니다.
석면은 브레이크 패드, 개스켓, 조인트 컴파운드와 지붕재로 사용됐으며 노후 건축물에는 접착제, 바닥재, 단열재, 배관보온재, 지붕재 등에 존재합니다. 뿐만 아니라 가전제품이나 화장품에도 포함되어 있습니다.
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Asbestos has been banned in Singapore for 35 years. But the nation continues to experience more cases of malignant mesothelioma, a type of cancer caused by the mineral. The number has increased from five in the early 1980s to 110 in 2019.
Few young people today would be aware of asbestos and its toxic legacy.
Asbestos is a silicate mineral composed of fibers that are heat resistant. These properties make it ideal for fire-retardant coatings, and it was used widely in the construction and shipping industry worldwide up until the 1990s.
Asbestos products include brake pads, gaskets, joint compounds, and roofing materials. Many older buildings contain asbestos in adhesives, flooring, insulation, plumbing, and roofs. Some consumer goods such as appliances and cosmetics products also contained this poison.
This was before researchers exposed the health hazards of its use, resulting in progressive bans in more than 50 countries beginning in the 1970s. Exposure to asbestos causes asbestos-related diseases such as asbestosis, lung cancer and malignant mesothelioma. Malignant mesothelioma is a rare cancer affecting the lining of the lungs and abdomen. It can take decades to show up after a person is first exposed to asbestos. It is almost always fatal with a short survival period from diagnosis to death.
Workers exposed to asbestos remained healthy for much of their lives with symptoms such as shortness of breath and chronic coughing developing only when they were much older. Victims were usually exposed at work with the largest number of cases coming from the marine, asbestos manufacturing, and construction industries. Asbestos exposure occurs when the material releases fibers into the air which are inhaled. These fibers lodge deep within the lung or abdominal linings and cause repeated inflammation and scarring over a person’s lifetime. Eventually, this can result in malignant mesothelioma.
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Asbestos: Singapore’s Toxic Past Is Catching up With It 
