Some Facts About Asbesto
Jennifer White
While tracing the history of asbestos it was found that its usage dates back to 2000 years. The name 'asbestos' was first used by the Greeks, which meant 'inextinguishable'. Though the Greeks also noted the harmful effect of asbestos, yet they did not pay any heed to its dangers because according to them it had magical powers that had to be used to fulfill the daily purposes of life.
The Roman naturalist Pliny and the Greek geographer Strabo also noted the devastating effect of asbestos on human beings but they did not arise any questions considering its several magical uses in their regular life.
Some Facts about Asbestos
What is Asbestos?
Asbestos is the term given to a collection of six naturally occurring minerals that are incombustible and separable into filaments. These six minerals are chrysotile, amosite, crocidolite, anthophyllite, termolite and actinolite. Among these six asbestos minerals, the first three are abundantly used in manufacturing of industrial and commercial products.
Uses of Asbestos
Asbestos was being used since ancient Greek times and its usage continued till 1700, but it was popularized after the Industrial Revolution. It was used in construction mainly in steel pipes, industries, steam pipes, hand held hair dryers to prevent over heating, household items and in several other industries for various purposes.
Versatility of Asbestos
The reason for the popularity of asbestos was its power of resistance to electricity and its fire and heat proofing capacities. Being a fireproof or incombustible material, asbestos is impervious to every weather effect. This high tensile strength and flexibility makes asbestos very versatile for usage in various products and industries.
Diseases caused by Asbestos
One of the deadliest diseases caused by asbestos is mesothelioma cancer. It has become a threat to human civilization causing pain, suffering and loss of thousands of lives. The mortality rate is so high that eight out of ten mesothelioma patients pass away even before the treatment starts. It is a deadly cancer caused mainly to those who are exposed to asbestos in some way.
The other deadly disease caused by asbestos is asbestosis, a serious form of lung illness. The main symptoms of asbestosis are short breath after exercise or exertion, dry prolonged cough, general malaise or feeling tired and wheezing.
Treatment of Diseases caused by Asbestos
Being a form of cancer, all the traditional cancer treatments are applied to treat mesothelioma. Surgery for cutting out the affected part of the lungs, chemotherapy to attack the cancer cells; or radiation to kill the cancerous cells are the only treatments for mesothelioma cancer. However, newer and better modes of treatments are being worked out to help mesothelioma patients.
Diagnosis for asbestosis is necessary in its early stage as prolonged asbestosis can turn into mesothelioma cancer later in life. Regular intake of the prescribed medicine and check-up can help a lot. But the life span decreases on its own as the disease is diagnosed a long time after exposure to asbestos.
Legal Claims for Asbestosis and Mesothelioma
An asbestosis or mesothelioma legal claim can be filed on your behalf if your disease is caused by exposure to asbestos. An attorney will investigate how much asbestos containing material you were exposed to, who were the employers and what proper safety measures were taken for your health. This claim can be made against the construction company, the asbestos suppliers and even the individuals who were responsible to look after your health safety.
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Chemotherapy Treatment and Hair Loss
By: Tim Bock
In chemotherapy treatment the entire body is affected in one way or another. Unfortunately a side effect of this treatment is hair loss. Chemotherapy is carried out by administering drugs that are designed to kill cancerous cells. These drugs are injected right into the vein or muscle tissue. The drugs flow through the blood stream. Because of this systematic treatment the drugs cannot be taken orally.
Since there are several types of chemotherapy drugs, side effects can vary. These drugs generally affect rapidly dividing cells. Mostly affected are blood cells. It’s important to note that these cells primarily job is to fight infection, carry oxygen to other areas of the body and help clot blood. Cancer patients will be more exposed to infections, bleed easily and become more fatigued.
One side effect for some chemotherapy drugs is thinning hair. It’s also possible that that you could lose your hair all together, depending on the drugs used. Some people take this kind of hair loss very seriously, which is understandable because it’s so noticeable and not easy to hide. It’s a good idea to understand the implications of chemotherapy induced hair loss before it happens. This will make the transition easier down the road.
Depression is often a byproduct of chemotherapy and hair loss in cancer patients. It’s sometimes difficult to deal with the helplessness and embarrassment of the situation. It’s never easy for friends and family either. Cancer, no matter what type, is always serous and often times hereditary. Women usually have a much a more difficult time dealing with this type of hair loss then men do, since a woman’s hair is usually a part of her personally and pride.
Through this difficult time it’s important to never lose hope. Sometimes the best way to deal with the situation is positive thinking. Positive thinking can sometimes lead us through the darkest times, even when things seem hopeless.
In chemotherapy treatment the entire body is affected in one way or another. Unfortunately a side effect of this treatment is hair loss
For more hair loss prevention tips, please visit: Hair Loss Solutions a website that specializes in combating hair loss and hair loss from chemotherapy
Article Source: http://www.eArticlesOnline.com
Human Hair Wigs for Chemotherapy Patients
By Anne Clarke
Not only do human chemotherapy wigs look good—but they help people going through very difficult times. The concept of chemotherapy wigs made of donated, human hair is almost heroic. Perhaps even more than any other kind of wig, human hair will look the very best. The purpose is to do the very best possible job of making sure that the person undergoing agonizing treatment can live as actively as possible, look great, and feel more confident wearing their human hair wigs.
Children especially do not want to stand out, there is often no tolerance for the unusual in elementary schools. Children can be very cruel. A wig will help a child feel more like the others in their schools or day-camps etc. In anyone’s case, as he or she battles the horrors of chemotherapy, believe it or not, chemotherapy wigs can be a primary concern. When the purpose of finding chemotherapy wigs, not for your self but for a chemotherapy patient, you are truly warming someone’s heart. Whether you know the patient or not the gift of a wig can (and is likely to be) the very best gift for him or her.
Everything from curly wigs to straight, long or short, men’s or women’s wigs, or whatever you are looking for, can usually be found online through wig stores, and you can even have you wig custom designed from various places.
Full, natural-looking wigs are what you need if you are looking for a chemotherapy wig. The purpose of the wig is to appear as much like human hair as possible. And, of course, you can’t purchase a half wig or hairpiece – often a full wig is the very best way to go.
Anne Clarke writes numerous articles for websites on gardening, parenting, fashion, and home decor. Her background includes teaching, gardening, and fashion. For more of her useful articles on wigs, please visit humanhairwigs.org, supplier of high quality Human Hair Wigs and Wig Hairpieces.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Anne_Clarke
Symptoms of Chronic and Acute Leukemia
By Groshan Fabiola
Discovering leukemia while it is still in an early phase is crucial in its treatment because when the disease advances it starts to spread in the whole body and it's much harder to be treated.
Therefore it's important to learn the symptoms of leukemia so that you can can detect its signs and take the appropriate measures. Symptoms however may vary from one person to another and they also depend on what type of leukemia the patient has. Leukemia can be divided into two major types: acute leukemia and chronic leukemia, each having its specific symptoms.
Leukemia symptoms result from the fact that the blood cells of someone suffering from leukemia are diseased and they can't fulfill their role anymore.
Patients with acute leukemia have too little red blood cells in their bodies which leads to a general feeling of weakness and to a pale color.
On the other hand, a person with too many abnormal white blood cells can develop fever, is very easily bruised, will suddenly start bleeding out his/her nose or gums and sometimes they will feel pain in the joints.
Other common symptoms of leukemia are pain in the abdomen, swollen lymph nodes, weight loss, sweating, and if the disease spreads to the brain headaches, disorientation, balance problems and confusion appears.
Acute leukemia develops much faster that chronic leukemia, but it's easier to be discovered because people come at the doctor because they feel sick. Chronic leukemia develops much slower but it's harder to detect it because very often it shows no specific symptoms and it's discovered when it has already advanced a lot. Always feeling weakend and getting infections often can be a sign so visit your doctor for an accurate diagnosis.
If someone reports a few of these symptoms to the doctor then some special tests must be performed to determine whether the person has leukemia or not and if he/she has it then some other tests need to be done to determine what kind of treatment gives the best results. The lymph and blood marrow must be examined and blood samples must also be processed in order to establish an accurate diagnosis. Once the leukemia diagnose is established chemotherapy usually begins. The survival rate gets higher and higher each year.
For more resources on different leukemia related issues like leukemia symptoms, leukemia causes and many more visit http://www.leukemia-guide.com.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com
