How do asbestos fibers enter the body?
Inhalation – Breathing air which has asbestos-containing fibers in it, is the primary route of damaging exposure. Some of the asbestos fibers reaching the lungs are eliminated in exhaled air and others are coughed from the lungs with mucous. The fibers reaching the deepest air passages of the lungs can produce the greatest damage. Ingestion – The digestive system can be exposed to asbestos fibers from drinking water and mucous cleared from the lungs. A small number of fibers may penetrate the cells that line the digestive system, but only a few will reach the bloodstream. These fibers will be released in the urine. Through the Skin – Asbestos fibers contacting the skin rarely pass through the skin into the body.
