Minnesota Mesothelioma and Asbestos Attorneys Blog | Dakota County MN Mesothelioma Lawyers

Asbestos exposure: FDA says consumers are at risk

On behalf of Ryan Gott of Sieben Polk P.A. posted in Asbestos exposure on Tuesday, March 19, 2019.

Minnesota parents often worry about their children's health and safety. Everyday life issues can place kids at risk for injury, such as falling while playing outdoors. There are often more serious, hidden risks present in children's lives as well. The Food and Drug Administration recently reported such a risk regarding popular cosmetic products that many teenagers and parents purchase from Claire's and Justice stores. The FDA says people who use certain products from these stores are at risk for asbestos exposure.

Asbestos particles are microscopic. There is no safe amount of exposure. If ingested or inhaled, these particles can linger in the lungs or other areas of the body, resulting in various types of incurable diseases, such as mesothelioma or asbestosis. The FDA recently published the results of tests done on products from Claire's and Justice stores. These results state that asbestos was found in several cosmetic products from both stores.

Asbestosis: Getting the care and support you need

On behalf of Ryan Gott of Sieben Polk P.A. posted in Asbestosis on Wednesday, March 6, 2019.

Can you recall when you first began to notice that something wasn't right and you just didn't feel well? Perhaps, at first, you thought you were overly tired from work or maybe had contracted a minor illness. Were you prompted to schedule an appointment with a Minnesota medical doctor when you realized your symptoms were not subsiding? Asbestosis often presents like that -- slowly developing symptoms that linger and feel worse over time.

Sadly, many people receive diagnoses of this disease and others, such as mesothelioma, after using certain products or working in certain industries. These illnesses often stem from asbestos exposure. In fact, there isn't such a thing as a safe amount of exposure to asbestos. Once a diagnosis is made, the main focus becomes how best to care for the asbestos-injured person as he or she comes to terms with the fact that his or her illness is terminal.

Who is responsible for your cancer?

On behalf of Ryan Gott of Sieben Polk P.A. on Monday, March 4, 2019.

For decades, parents used baby powder while diapering their children. Perhaps your parents used Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder to keep you dry and comfortable as a baby.

In light of recent allegations regarding the asbestos contamination of the company’s powder, you might be curious about how a product deemed safe for use on infants could lead to multiple class-action lawsuits.

Yet another school community facing possible asbestos exposure

On behalf of Ryan Gott of Sieben Polk P.A. posted in Asbestos exposure on Wednesday, February 20, 2019.

This blog has recently reported on several schools and universities in several states encountering problems related to asbestos. In each situation, parents and faculty have been greatly concerned that school officials did not act quickly enough to inform them of potential health risks associated with possible asbestos exposure. The topic has once again surfaced in a Montessori school in another state. Minnesota parents of school age children may want to closely follow these cases and also learn more about where to seek support if a similar problem occurs in their hometowns.

The most recent report states that more than 200 parents gathered at a meeting to discuss a situation where asbestos has been found at their children's school. Construction has been ongoing at the school since November. School officials recently confirmed that workers may have drilled into drywall that contains asbestos. Drilling, hammering, scraping and other activity that disturbs asbestos-laden materials substantially increases the risk to the health of anyone exposed to the microscopic fibers in the air.

Asbestos exposure scare at university has many people concerned

On behalf of Ryan Gott of Sieben Polk P.A. posted in Asbestos exposure on Tuesday, February 5, 2019.

The microscopic asbestos fibers that are found in many building materials can be highly dangerous to human health. In fact, scientists say there is no known safe amount of asbestos exposure. This may be why many people who attend school and work at a university in the Midwest are worried about their own health and that of their loved ones. Minnesota residents who work or go to school in old buildings may want to follow this case.

It was recently announced that a particular building on campus was found to have high levels of asbestos. University officials shut the building down. However, doing so has prompted a lot of questions from numerous employees, including one man who has worked there for 25 years.

100 parents fearing asbestos exposure plan to keep kids home

On behalf of Ryan Gott of Sieben Polk P.A. posted in Asbestos exposure on Thursday, January 24, 2019.

A group of elementary students in another state may find themselves getting unexpected time off school. Up to 100 parents may be joining a mother who has spearheaded a protest against the school regarding possible asbestos exposure to anyone in the building. The woman's son suffers multiple adverse health conditions, which she believes he contracted as a senior in high school in 2017, when the same school district conducted asbestos abatement exercises without properly notifying parents of the students. Minnesota parents of school children may want to follow this case.

There is no safe amount of exposure to asbestos, which is why stringent laws exist regarding removal of asbestos-laden materials from any property or structure. When building materials are friable (meaning, easily able to crumble) they pose serious health risks if they happen to contain asbestos. Any type of disturbance, such as that caused by hammering, sawing, drilling or other building or renovation activity also greatly increases the risk of asbestos injury.

Are you grieving a loved one who suffered fatal asbestos injury?

On behalf of Ryan Gott of Sieben Polk P.A. posted in Wrongful death arising from asbestos exposure on Monday, January 7, 2019.

It is never easy to lose a loved one, especially if he or she died in a sudden accident or from a terminal illness. When Minnesota family members learn that the latter may have been prevented, it can greatly intensify their grief. This is often the case in situations that involve fatal asbestos injury. If your family member died because of employer negligence, you may feel a strong desire to seek justice on his or her behalf.

Mesothelioma and asbestosis are two of many incurable illnesses related to asbestos exposure. In fact, it was long ago established that there is no safe amount of exposure to asbestos, which is a collection of microscopic fibers contained in many products used in construction, textile production, the automotive industry and elsewhere. Employers are legally obligated to inform their workers of any and all known asbestos dangers on the job.

Asbestos exposure, the military and companies with trust funds

On behalf of Ryan Gott of Sieben Polk P.A. posted in Asbestos exposure on Sunday, December 30, 2018.

Minnesota is home to many U.S. military veterans, some who recall serving as far back as World War II, Korea or in Vietnam. War efforts are always expensive, and especially during W.W.II, thousands of vehicles and other war supplies were built that sparked an industrial boom in the United States. It also caused a lot of people to suffer asbestos exposure, even though most manufacturers were already aware of asbestos-related dangers at that time.

Many say the military is not to blame regarding service members or civilians who worked to help the war effort and subsequently suffered ill-health due to asbestos. Most believe liability lies with the manufacturers who knew workers were at risk but did nothing to keep them safe. Sadly, the majority of medical patients who suffer from mesothelioma (a terminal disease related to asbestos poisoning) are U.S. military veterans.

Most common symptoms and causes of mesothelioma

On behalf of Ryan Gott of Sieben Polk P.A. on Friday, December 28, 2018.

Mesothelioma is an aggressive cancer that affects the tissue surrounding a person’s internal organs. Most often, the tissue that is affected surrounds the lungs, but the cancer can also occur in the tissue surrounding the stomach, heart and other internal organs.

Over 3,000 people are diagnosed with mesothelioma each year. Many of these people developed the cancer from asbestos exposure that occurred decades before they started experiencing symptoms.

Are women at high risk for asbestos exposure?

On behalf of Ryan Gott of Sieben Polk P.A. posted in Asbestos exposure on Wednesday, December 12, 2018.

Minnesota residents often do not recognize situations that are potentially hazardous to their health. For instance, in many cases where asbestos exposure has occurred, those affected were unaware that the microscopic fibers were present in the air or in materials they were exposed to in the workplace or elsewhere. Sadly, many incidents are later determined to have been preventable were it not for employer negligence.

Many women, in particular, have said they feel their health concerns are not always taken seriously by medical professionals, employers or others. Regarding asbestos, there are currently at least 9,000 lawsuits pending against Johnson & Johnson company due to injuries suffered that are believed to have been caused by using the company's talcum products. The company has come out fighting, enlisting support from witnesses willing to testify that many women's mesothelioma cases are not caused by the company's products.

Eagan Minnesota Mesothelioma and Asbestos Law Blog