5. Asbestos was meant to make homes and appliances safer
As early as the 1930s, the dangers of exposure to asbestos fibers which were uncontained were well known within the asbestos industry, the United States Navy and shipbuilding industry, and within the construction industry. Asbestos which is contained, for example covered with paint, is harmless. Uncontained it is deadly. The only known cause of mesothelioma is asbestos exposure, and it is also known to cause other forms of lung cancer. For most of the twentieth century it was widely used in home construction, and remains present in many older homes in some form or another. It was also widely used in automobiles, trucks, and buses, from which asbestos particles were released into the atmosphere for several decades.
Asbestos was and is used in brakes, where it was a preferred material due to its heat resistance. Woven brake linings were invented by Arthur Raymond and his partner in 1906, manufactured from asbestos fiber, and led to his subsequent company being named Raybestos. Clutches and gaskets were also among the times manufactured from asbestos, and its valued properties as an insulator led to its being installed for both comfort control and sound dampening, including in headliners and door insulation. Exposure to asbestos from the wear of mechanical components was common for decades, though mechanics and hobbyists who worked on their own vehicles were at greater risk than the average driver. Brake dust within wheels and hubcaps nearly always contained asbestos, to which someone washing the vehicle was exposed.