Is the Fiberglass Health Threat the New Asbestos?

(NaturalSociety) The case against asbestos in building materials was finalized after decades of research traced several severe lung cancer incidents to asbestos poisoning. Now fiberglass, the replacement for asbestos, is under similar scrutiny for the same reasons.

Independent researchers at Cornell University discovered that sick building syndrome (SBS), which causes many occupants to suffer similar health issues, occurred mostly in newly built airtight structures without adequate internal air cleaning systems. They ran out of research funds and couldn’t continue.

A couple of decades ago, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), a medical wing of the Department of Labor, made an alarming discovery regarding man made mineral fibers (fiberglass). They determined that the fibers created DNA damage, which leads to chronic illness, and it is carcinogenic.

The anti-regulatory Congress, which encouraged the rapid rise of biotech industries such as Monsanto, threatened to abolish NIOSH around that time. Meanwhile, the large suppliers of fiberglass insulation claim they’ve done their own research.

They publicly assert all is well and reports to the contrary are based on faulty research. That’s from the foxes in the hen house.

Whistle Blower Claims Fiberglass Fibers are as Dangerous as Asbestos

Paul Ayers was a Certified Hazardous Materials (HazMat) Supervisor involved with the removal of industrial hazardous waste for several years. He quoted a 1974 position paper by Dr. Mearl Stanton of the National Cancer Institute (NCI) that was sent to a non-profit activist group called Victims of Fiberglass, which apparently no longer exists today.

Dr. Stanton stated: “… asbestos causes cancer not because it is asbestos, but because it is a Respirable Durable Fiber (RDF). RDFs completely unrelated to asbestos such as fiberglass and rock wool are equally carcinogenic.”

Dr. Stanton clarified later in 1977 that it’s not the chemical property of the fibers, but their sizes and shapes that determine hazards to the lungs. When long, thin sharp fibers are inhaled, they can deeply penetrate sensitive lung tissues and begin a process leading to emphysema, COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder), or cancer.

Read: Indoor Air Pollution Could Cause 50% of Illness Globally

Fiberglass actually comes from glass. Microscopic glass shards are created from sand in special furnaces then coated with phenol-formaldehyde and urea-formaldehyde resins. Formaldehyde has been established as a known carcinogen. It’s also used as a preservative in most vaccines, by the way.

Fiberglass wool is used in those pink rolls of insulation you’ve seen on construction sites or TV commercials. There is also the loose pink foamy stuff that can be sprayed into attics for insulation. Even cigarette filters have used fiber glass. Instead of protecting against nicotine, the tiny shards from the filters can cut into the lungs and allow more nicotine to penetrate the lungs.

There have been tooth pastes using fiberglass fibers as abrasives as well. The tiny coated shards cut the gums enough to allow toothpaste fluoride to penetrate directly into the bloodstream. It’s reported that some pharmaceutical medications use fiberglass fibers to create internal incisions for absorption enhancement.

When it comes to solid fiberglass items, the workers in those manufacturing plants have the highest exposure from working and sanding fiberglass products. But where does all that fiberglass dust go from those plants?

Paul Ayers and the Victims of Fiberglass group pointed to an increase in outdoor airborne fiberglass fibers in some of those areas.

Fiberglass insulation is used throughout office buildings, apartment buildings, and homes. You can check your home or office for airborne fiberglass content by partially taping over central air vents. Take the tape off and look for tiny shiny particles with a flashlight.

The fiberglass industry is circling their wagons, and you can’t rely on government agencies. Protect your health yourself.

Additional Sources:

NY Times