What are the symptoms of silica?
These commonly include bronchitis-like symptoms such as persistent cough, shortness of breath and difficulty breathing. People also suffer from weakness, fatigue, fever, night sweats, leg swelling and bluish discoloration of the lips.
Is silica harmful to humans?
Crystalline silica has been classified as a human lung carcinogen, and can cause serious lung disease and lung cancer. It only takes a very small amount of respirable silica dust to create a health hazard.
What kind of cancer does silica cause?
Silica dust and cancer Exposure to silica dust can lead to the development of lung cancer, silicosis (an irreversible scarring and stiffening of the lungs), kidney disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
What effect does silica have on the body?
Although consuming silica doesn’t appear to have negative effects, inhaling small particles of it can increase your risk of developing serious silica-related diseases, such as: Silicosis. Lung cancer. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Can silica damage your kidneys?
Silica dust particles are tiny, over 100 times smaller than the sand you see on the beaches. If you are exposed to silica dust in the workplace, this can cause many chronic health problems including kidney damage and kidney failure. The more you are exposed, the greater the risk.
Is silica a carcinogen?
In 1987 the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified crystalline silica (CS) as a probable carcinogen and in 1997 reclassified it as a Group 1 carcinogen, i.e., that there was sufficient evidence for carcinogenicity in experimental animals and sufficient evidence for carcinogenicity in humans.
Can you get cancer from concrete?
Some epidemiological studies have indicated that cement and concrete dust might be carcinogenic. A case-control study in Denmark found that people working in concrete and cement manufacturing had an increased risk of laryngeal cancer.
Which serious disease is caused by exposure to fine particles of silica?
Silicosis is a long-term lung disease caused by inhaling large amounts of crystalline silica dust, usually over many years. Silica is a substance naturally found in certain types of stone, rock, sand and clay. Working with these materials can create a very fine dust that can be easily inhaled.
Which of the following is the most common symptoms of silicosis?
Chronic silicosis, which results from long-term exposure (more than 20 years) to low amounts of silica dust. The silica dust causes swelling in the lungs and chest lymph nodes. This disease may cause people to have trouble breathing. This is the most common form of silicosis.