Is It Bad To Inhale Granite Dust

Dust pneumonia is an acute type of respiratory distress that can develop into an infection of the lungs.

Is it bad to inhale granite dust.

Despite its many benefits to the construction industry it comes with a number of health risks. For example during a lifetime a coal miner may inhale 1 000 g of dust into his lungs. Crystalline silica has been classified as a human lung carcinogen. As a multipurpose building material it provides compact results.

When doctors examine the lungs of a miner after death they find no more than 40 g of dust. Crystalline silica is a basic component of soil sand granite and many other minerals. Such a relatively small residue illustrates the importance of the lungs defenses and certainly suggests that they are quite effective. You can work with silica containing materials in ways that do not result in exposure to dust.

Rutland herald granite dust may 28 2000 by john dillon staff writer the federal government has concluded that the tiny crystalline rock particles found in granite dust can cause lung cancer a finding that may lead to stricter regulation of vermont s stone industry. When you inhale the dust silica particles scar your lungs causing a disabling irreversible and incurable lung disease called silicosis. When these materials are disturbed they release a dust that is dangerous to inhale. The good news is that silicosis is 100 preventable.

When we talk about silica dust we are referring to crystalline silica. Respirable crystalline silica is a chemical compound present in stone dust soil granite and many other minerals. These silica dust particles can cause scarring in the lungs leading to a serious and irreversible lung condition known as silicosis. When materials such as concrete stone brick or granite are cut or ground by workers it can create extremely fine dust particles which can make their way deep into the lungs if inhaled.

Symptoms include a chronic cough and shortness of breath. Workers and residents living in areas adjacent to stone quarries are prone to a disease called silicosis whereby inhaled marble dust damages the cells of the respiratory system. Inhaling marble dust causes toxic effects on the respiratory system. Silica dust is the creation of fine particles of a type of silica known as crystalline silica which can be found in stone rocks sand and clay.