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Asbestos Exposure

Kingy298
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Hi Everyone, 

Just looking for some advice /reassurance with some asbestos exposure I had a few years back.

About 4 years ago (age 20) I was asked to help a builder on a days work to remove some asbestos sheets from a roof. Being naive  and not knowing about asbestosi agreed and went along, I was provided with a mask and boiler suit. Looked like an ordinary face mask with a plastic circle bit on it so might have been suitable but I'm not sure. I remember the day very well and do remember the builder breaking some parts during the process, I never did this and was not directly over the asbestos sheets when done. 
 

We was only at the job a couple hours but I suffer from anxiety and have been recently reading abit asbestos exposure. 
 

im now 24 and healthy and do not smoke.

 

I know what is done is done but should i really be concerned ?

 

Edit - Having a look through masks online it seems I was wearing a P2 standard respirator disposable mask, I understand these are not the correct type but surely it was some protection?

 

many thanks in advance

 

 

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    Hi Kingy298. Welcome to the forum.

    You'd be surprised how often this question pops up on this forum. 

    The consensus is that we all get exposed to asbestos on occasions, and a single short exposure is highly unlikely to cause any serious harm.  Most people who get asbestos disease do so after many exposures over a period of many years, often accompanied by smoking.

    It seems very unlikely that your one day exposure is going to do you any harm, so there's no need to be concerned.  I'm sure you'll be more careful in future, and since you don't smoke, that is one risk factor you're already avoiding.

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    Hi Kingy298,

    I have also experienced a similar scenario to yours and really got myself worried over my asbestos exposure. This lead me to reading nearly every single article concerning Asbestos exposure, talking to Asbestos experts on the phone, and booking a GP appointment to discuss my worries.

    Firstly, please try not to worry about this exposure. Asbestos can seem extremely frightening when we first find out about it, and the horror stories on the internet certainly don't help. The general consensus is that such small and brief exposure presents a negligible health risk. The reason for this is because we are exposed to very small amounts of Asbestos fibers in the air anyways due to environmental and constructional changes. Asbestos-related diseases occur in those who have worked in high-risk jobs, for over several years. Most people now undertake DIY work and so it is extremely common to come into contact with small amounts of Asbestos during your work yet there are no reported cases of these people becoming ill from this small exposure. 

    If you would like, I could send you a link to a study that monitored those experiencing heavy asbestos exposure for just under 3 months whilst mining in Australia, yet there were no cases of any asbestos-related illnesses. Also on this forum, there was a writer who explained he spent 3 days cutting AIB and being covered in the dust for 8 hours a day, and his GP explained that the risk was very low.

    I really hope this helps, and please don't hesitate to message me back for any further info. Thanks, R

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