Global Asbestos Awareness Week to highlight potential health hazards

Dubai, UAE: The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) has announced its worldwide campaign to eliminate asbestos with Global Asbestos Awareness Week (GAAW), being held from April 1 to 7.

GAAW, said ADAO, is intended to raise awareness about asbestos and educate communities to prevent asbestos-related diseases, in the hope that more and more countries will ban its use.

It is a known fact, ADAO pointed out, that asbestos is still mined, imported and used in both developing and developed countries around the world, despite being confirmed as a human carcinogen. The devastating health issues and diseases caused from exposure to asbestos represent a significant cost to society, and an unbelievably painful experience for the individuals and families affected, ADAO stressed.

According to ADAO, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 107,000 workers around the world will die every year of an asbestos-related disease, equalling 300 deaths per day, while only 55 countries have banned asbestos and, therefore, workers are still being exposed to this daily, with potentially life-threatening consequences.

ADAO said that it is wholly dedicated to improving these statistics, and is actively working to prevent and eliminate asbestos-caused diseases. The organisation is reportedly co-founded by Linda Reinstein in 2014, following the untimely death of her husband to mesothelioma. She now serves as President and CEO of ADAO.

“Shared voices and actions are critically important to ending the man-made asbestos disaster,” Reinstein said. “We need to continue to build a global community of support and hope.”

ADAO has urged everyone to join the asbestos fight and support the cause.