According to a study performed by the American Journal of Industrial Medicine, cases of mesothelioma, an incurable cancer caused by asbestos, are rising drastically in Mexico alongside the increased use of asbestos products in a wide variety of Mexican industries. The vast majority of developing nations have not banned the use of asbestos, and have not taken steps in creating regulations to safeguard employees and reduce general exposure. The researchers who performed the study suggested that Mexico should take steps to outlaw the use of asbestos in order to control the rise of asbestos related diseases.

The study included the findings of occupational health researchers seeking to illuminate just how many cases of mesothelioma in Mexico were due to asbestos exposure in the workplace. Much like the United States throughout the latter half of the 20th century, public awareness of the hazards of asbestos exposure in Mexico is very low, and many employees who are exposed to the dangerous substance on a regular basis are unaware of the potential consequences.

While most developed nations have strictly banned asbestos in all forms (except the United States which highly regulates its use but has not banned it), nations such as Canada and Russia still manufacture asbestos products for export. Canadian public health organizations recognize the health hazards associated with asbestos fibers, and while the use of asbestos products are not permitted within the country more than $100 million of the dangerous substance is exported to developing nations every year.

Much of the life threatening white asbestos, or chrysotile asbestos, used in Mexican industry is imported from Canada. Mexico’s underdeveloped public health and safety regulations, their inability to consistently diagnose the disease correctly, and a frightening lack of public awareness help to make these types of imports possible.

In an effort to better understand the mesothelioma problem in Mexico, researchers interviewed about 500 workers who lived in the metropolitan area around Mexico city, hoping to better understand where average exposure levels lie. The interviewees, as well as others living in and around Mexico City, ran the risk of high exposure due to the high amount of asbestos using industries in the area. About one fifth of those interviewed had already been diagnosed with mesothelioma.

Unfortunately, an asbestos ban is probably not in Mexico’s near future. Asbestos products are cheap and incredibly effective as insulation, fire retardants, and strengthening additives for concrete and other building materials. As long as developed nations continue to irresponsibly manufacture and export the substance the problem will continue.