Asia asbestos diseases to rise 20%

World Health Organization officials warn of massive increases in deaths from asbestos-related lung diseases in Asia in the next 20 years. Dr. Ken Takahashi, acting director of the WHO Collaborating Center for Occupational Health, and his team assembled data on asbestos use in 47 Asian countries. The study, published in Respirology, says Asian countries accounted for 64 percent of the global consumption of asbestos from 2001 to 2007, an increase of 14 percent between 1920 and 1970 many Asian governments have yet banned the use of asbestos. For the study, the research team used data from the WHO Mortality Database and published studies. "Despite concerns of the global asbestos related disease epidemic and Asia's growing importance in the world, data on current asbestos use and asbestos related diseases in Asia remain limited," Takahashi says in a statement. The WHO says asbestos a cheap mineral fiber commonly used for insulation is one of the most dangerous occupational carcinogens, and an estimated 107,000 people worldwide die from asbestos related disease. Asbestos is a mineral fiber commonly used for insulation in constructions.