 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Veterans and Asbestos Exposure
Over 30 percent of Americans diagnosed with mesothelioma have been exposed to asbestos during some kind of military service. Prolonged exposure to asbestos is known to cause asbestosis and lung cancer, both of which are painful and potentially lethal diseases. Veterans at the greatest risk are those who served from World War II to the Vietnam War. Naval veterans are also at a higher level of risk for contracting an asbestos related diseases due to the Navy's heavy usage of asbestos based materials in shipyards and ships. The naval personnel working below the deck had the highest risk of asbestos exposure because asbestos based materials were used extensively in boiler and engine rooms. However, since asbestos was used in mess halls, navigation rooms, pipe insulation and in sleeping quarters all sailors who served aboard Navy ships were exposed to asbestos. Although Navy sailors are certainly the one of the highest risk groups, other military and contracted civilian positions that worked with asbestos include: * Boiler room workers Both military records and medical evidence reveal that hundreds of thousands and potentially millions of veterans from every branch of the military were exposed unnecessarily to asbestos during their service. As an unfortunate result, countless veterans are currently suffering from lung cancer, asbestosis, mesothelioma and other asbestos related diseases. |
Until the 1980s, asbestos-containing products were used extensively by each branch of the U.S. military. The military relied heavily on asbestos during the 1930s up through the mid-1970s, even though there was knowledge and evidence of the chemical's dangerous health effects . Eventually, every military branch decreased usage of asbestos based materials as more and more evidence of the deadly risks came to light - but this wasn't until hundreds of thousands, potentially millions, of veterans had been exposed.
