Dr. Travis: Before the break, we read an email from Margerie in Illinois, who wants to know what the symptoms of asbestos poisoning are and how it really affects the body. This is a great question because asbestos can be found in the insulation of all their homes, and I want to show an animation of what happens with asbestos in your body because they are a little fibrous, they go into your lung, and they are actually, when you get into the small sacks of your lung called the alveoli, those little white particles represent asbestos. They are swallowed by immune cells, which then move into the tissues of your lung, which this immune cell is trying to do right now, and then your body reacts to it. That red area that’s about to form is inflammation around the immune cell that has gobbled up asbestos. And the problem with that is it can cause long term problems, 20-30 years after exposure, lung cancer amongst other things.
Male Speaker: You know Travis, I think the big problem is that we have this huge scare out there, and a lot of it is the commercials you are seeing on TV for plaintiffs, attorneys, “Are you a victim of asbestosis?” Meaning like it’s the plague. You explained it well. I mean, yes, it can be a serious disease, but to really get it, your exposure has to be over many years and a large, large amount. I mean really only somebody who work in the asbestos business.
Dr Travis: And it’s really a disease that is becoming less and less common because asbestos isn’t in insulation anymore.
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