The fiberglass manufacturing industry includes many of the same corporations which created the asbestos tragedy, except now these corporations are larger and operate in many countries. Despite recent bankruptcies, the fiberglass manufacturers retain much wealth, in the form of factories, brand names and distribution channels. Their long fingers reach into universities and medical centers, where their money pays for " research" on the safety of their products.
This "research" may sound scientific, but always determines the product cannot be proven hazardous. Often, the study logic deceives. For instance, hamsters held captive in a "nose cone" may not always get cancers when exposed to a fiberglass aerosol, but hamsters cannot breathe through their mouth, as people often do, and their furry little noses actually filter fibers very effectively. Their tiny little lungs have nowhere near the capacity, and generate nowhere near the air velocity, of a human exerting themself, say, when installing insulation or running a cable through a hot attic.
Because of its monstrous potential liability, the fiberglass industry can never admit to a sliver of possibility its products cause disease, especially cancer. Any researcher who says otherwise should look for research funding elsewhere.
A candid discussion about the merits and hazards of today's insulation products benefits society substantially in the long run. The asbestos legacy shows that senseless human suffering and mind-numbing litigation always follow when society allows wealthy manufacturers to do as they please.
Instead, unwary installers continue pumping potentially lethal loose glass fibers into attics all over the world. Tons of filthy, rotting fiberglass insulation lurking in aging buildings endangers trades persons, cleaning crews, even teachers and schoolchildren. Homeowners tromping through attics unwittingly dust their family with tiny glass shards. Fiberglass is ubiquitous, yet most people know very little about this man-made replacement for asbestos.
If you think it's a reasonable proposition that inhaling microscopic shards of glass coated with phenol-formaldehyde and urea-formaldehyde resins can cause disease, then this site will make sense to you. We hope you will do what you can to spread the word.
How can you help stop the "man-made asbestos" industry? One way is to use only Earth-friendly construction materials and building techniques. Another way is to let your elected officials know that you don't want toxic products in your homes, schools and offices. If you are a doctor or a lawyer, you can inform yourself about the hazards of fiberglass, and use your skills to heal the sickened and seek justice for the wronged. If your family was harmed by toxic insulation and shoddy building practices, you can fight the injustice in court and be compensated for your injuries.
