First Mad Cow, Now Asbestos

Just when the British thought they were safe from so-called mad cow disease, doctors are predicting an “asbestos epidemic.” An article published in the British Medical Journal claims that more than 100,000 people now living will eventually die of Mesothelioma, a disease linked to asbestos inhalation. The disease can take as long as 50 years to develop.

Roughly 1,800 people die each year of Mesothelioma in the United Kingdom. Doctors believe the rate will increase to about 2,000 a year between 2015 and 2020.

Britain banned asbestos use in 1983.

For Americans, the good news is that rates of mesothelioma likely already have peaked in the United States, which introduced asbestos restrictions much earlier than Britain.

Posted by Jim Langcuster at January 30, 2004 10:36 AM