{"id":4540,"date":"2017-07-12T12:15:20","date_gmt":"2017-07-12T04:15:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/smartairfilters.com\/?p=4540"},"modified":"2020-07-15T11:56:55","modified_gmt":"2020-07-15T03:56:55","slug":"asbestos-china","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/smartairfilters.com\/en\/blog\/asbestos-china\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Asbestos in China a Problem?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Asbestos in China is a commonly used building material, and it may be more dangerous than formaldehyde. So why do so few people talk about asbestos in China?<\/p>\n

Contrast that with other pollutants. One day a few years ago, a Chinese friend of mine asked me about jiaquan<\/em>\u00a0(\u7532\u919b). “Huh?” I had to look it up. Turns out it means \u201cformaldehyde.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Formaldehyde<\/p>\n

At that point, I started to realize how many people in China are concerned about formaldehyde\u2014and for good reason. Formaldehyde is in lots of everyday products, and it causes cancer.<\/p>\n

But there\u2019s another common building material out there, and it also causes cancer. But until I looked it up for this article, I didn\u2019t know how to say it in Chinese: asbestos,\u00a0shimian<\/em>\u00a0(\u77f3\u68c9). I think that\u2019s a sign that asbestos isn\u2019t on as many people\u2019s minds in China.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Really? Asbestos Isn’t a Thing in China?\u00a0<\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n

But is that just my biased experience? I searched for both \u201casbestos\u201d and \u201cformaldehyde\u201d\u00a0on Zhihu<\/a>, a popular question-answer site in China. \u201cFormaldehyde\u201d turned up almost 20,000 references. \u201cAsbestos\u201d turned up 4,000.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Asbestos seems to get only a small fraction of the attention that formaldehyde gets in China. But should it?<\/p>\n

What is Asbestos?<\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n

Asbestos\u00a0is a mineral that makes a great fiber. People use that fiber in lots of building materials, like insulation, paints, electric wiring, wall boards, and floor tiles. Asbestos might be all around us.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Macro<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Should I Be Concerned About Asbestos?<\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n

When any of these materials break apart, the asbestos can become airborne and get into our lungs. Asbestos fibers can lodge in the lining of the throat, lungs, or stomach, causing cancerous mutations.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Break<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

There\u2019s even a type of cancer called \u201cmesothelioma<\/a>,\u201d for which asbestos is the only scientifically proven cause.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Effects<\/p>\n

Effects of asbestos on the human body<\/p>\n

Is Asbestos Common in China?<\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n

Because of the known hazards<\/a> of asbestos, more than 50 countries have banned it. Despite that, an estimated 2 million tons of asbestos\u00a0continue to be used around the world each year<\/a>. But is it common in China? Maybe not, since I\u2019ve never heard anyone mention it in China.<\/p>\n

But the data shows China is a major asbestos consumer. In 2012, China consumed the most asbestos of any nation.<\/p>\n

\"Global<\/p>\n

China consumes 26% of the world’s asbestos, with India not far behind.<\/p>\n

China has made some moves to get rid of asbestos. When China built venues for the Beijing Olympics,\u00a0China declared<\/a> that it was not using asbestos cement, which had been the norm. Current laws in China say that asbestos should not be in car brakes and other products.<\/p>\n

However, China still uses asbestos. An industry spokesperson for the China Chrysotile Association said<\/a>, \u201cour production \u2026 can\u2019t keep pace with demand from the construction industry so we have to import from Russia.\u201d That suggest asbestos is still around us in China.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What You Should Know<\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n