Just when it started to be safer in a pool room without cigarette smoke, the chalk dust rears its cloud of dust...
Long Term Exposure to Chalk Dust
- Thread starter cuetechasaurus
- Start date
I am a Certified Safety Professional (CSP) but don't work in a silica related industry, but found this on a website that pretty much covers your real issues (I think), now that the lead issue has been cleared up.
From what I know, due to the fact that cue chalk is basically silicone dioxide (more or less finely ground sand) combined with some type of binding agent, the only real long term affects would be silicosis as noted below. Many laypeople don't really understand the defining factor in silocosis, but I will attempt to clarify by stating that exposure levels need to be pretty significant and cumulative over the course of many years as noted below. Concentrations at the level you are experiencing while brushing down the tables would not, in my opinion, be considered significant enough to warrant any concern. The human body is amazingly capable of freeing itself of similar nuisance dusts and other potentially toxic chemicals in low doses. Your nose first filters the air via your nose hairs, your lungs have small hairlike features to them that basically push contaminants back up through your respiratory system for you to blow out, sneeze out, etc.
Not unlike many other dry dusts, loose silica dust as that in cue chalk is easily filtered with a simple disposable respirator that can be found in pretty much any Home Depot or Lowe's, etc. I would start with that until the room owner purchases a vacuum recommended by others on the forum. Here is the info I gathered off of the net that is probably the most understandable.
Alternative names Acute silicosis; Chronic silicosis; Accelerated silicosis; Progressive massive fibrosis; Conglomerate silicosis
Definition Return to top
Silicosis is a respiratory disease caused by inhalation of silica dust, which leads to inflammation and scarring of the lung tissue.
Three types of silicosis are seen:
Simple chronic silicosis -- results from long-term exposure (more than 20 years) to low amounts of silica dust. Nodules of chronic inflammation and scarring provoked by the silica dust form in the lungs and chest lymph nodes. This disease may feature breathlessness and may resemble chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
Accelerated silicosis -- occurs after exposure to larger amounts of silica over a shorter period of time (5 - 15 years). Inflammation, scarring, and symptoms progress faster in accelerated silicosis than in simple silicosis.
Acute silicosis -- results from short-term exposure to very large amounts of silica. The lungs become very inflamed and may fill with fluid, causing severe shortness of breath and low blood oxygen levels.
Progressive massive fibrosis may occur in simple or accelerated silicosis, but is more common in the accelerated form. Progressive massive fibrosis results from severe scarring and leads to obliteration of normal lung structures.
Causes, incidence, and risk factors Return to top
Silica is a common, naturally-occurring crystal. It is found in most rock beds and forms dust during mining, quarrying, tunneling, and work with many metal ores. Silica is a main component of sand, so glass workers and sand-blasters also receive heavy exposure to silica.
Risk factors include any work that includes exposure to silica dust. Mining, stone cutting, quarrying, road and building construction, work with abrasives manufacturing, sand blasting and many other occupations and hobbies involve exposure to silica.
Intense exposure to silica may result in disease in a year or less, but it usually takes at least 10 or 15 years of exposure before symptoms develop. Silicosis has become less common since the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) instituted regulations requiring the use of protective equipment which limit the amount of silica dust inhaled.
Symptoms Return to top
Chronic cough
Shortness of breath with exercise, usually in patients who have progressive massive fibrosis
Additional symptoms that may be associated with this disease, especially in acute silicosis:
Fever
Cough
Weight loss
Severe breathing difficulty
Signs and tests Return to top
Your health care provider will take a careful medical history that includes many questions about your occupations (past and present), your hobbies, and other activities that may have exposed you to excessive silica. A physical exam will also be performed. Diagnostic tests to confirm the diagnosis and exclude other diseases that may appear similar include:
Chest x-ray
Pulmonary function tests
Purified protein derivative (PPD) skin test (for tuberculosis)
Treatment Return to top
There is no specific treatment for silicosis. Removal of the source of silica exposure is important to prevent further worsening of the disease. Supportive treatment includes cough suppression medications, bronchodilators, and oxygen if needed. Antibiotics are prescribed for respiratory infections as needed.
Other considerations for treatment include limiting continued exposure to irritants, smoking cessation, and routine tuberculosis skin testing.
People with silicosis are at high risk for developing tuberculosis (TB). Silica is believed to interfere with the body's immune response to the bacteria that causes TB. Yearly skin testing to check for exposure to TB is recommended. Treatment with anti-TB drugs is recommended for people with a positive skin test. Any change in the appearance of the chest x-ray may indicate TB.
Hope this helps. If there is serious concern, an specific Industrial Hygiene survey can be conducted to actually measure your exposure over the course of a workday to quantify the concentrations, but this would be pretty expensice, and possibly just a phone call to a Certified Industrial Hygienist could help clarify this for what you do in your job.
From what I know, due to the fact that cue chalk is basically silicone dioxide (more or less finely ground sand) combined with some type of binding agent, the only real long term affects would be silicosis as noted below. Many laypeople don't really understand the defining factor in silocosis, but I will attempt to clarify by stating that exposure levels need to be pretty significant and cumulative over the course of many years as noted below. Concentrations at the level you are experiencing while brushing down the tables would not, in my opinion, be considered significant enough to warrant any concern. The human body is amazingly capable of freeing itself of similar nuisance dusts and other potentially toxic chemicals in low doses. Your nose first filters the air via your nose hairs, your lungs have small hairlike features to them that basically push contaminants back up through your respiratory system for you to blow out, sneeze out, etc.
Not unlike many other dry dusts, loose silica dust as that in cue chalk is easily filtered with a simple disposable respirator that can be found in pretty much any Home Depot or Lowe's, etc. I would start with that until the room owner purchases a vacuum recommended by others on the forum. Here is the info I gathered off of the net that is probably the most understandable.
Alternative names Acute silicosis; Chronic silicosis; Accelerated silicosis; Progressive massive fibrosis; Conglomerate silicosis
Definition Return to top
Silicosis is a respiratory disease caused by inhalation of silica dust, which leads to inflammation and scarring of the lung tissue.
Three types of silicosis are seen:
Simple chronic silicosis -- results from long-term exposure (more than 20 years) to low amounts of silica dust. Nodules of chronic inflammation and scarring provoked by the silica dust form in the lungs and chest lymph nodes. This disease may feature breathlessness and may resemble chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
Accelerated silicosis -- occurs after exposure to larger amounts of silica over a shorter period of time (5 - 15 years). Inflammation, scarring, and symptoms progress faster in accelerated silicosis than in simple silicosis.
Acute silicosis -- results from short-term exposure to very large amounts of silica. The lungs become very inflamed and may fill with fluid, causing severe shortness of breath and low blood oxygen levels.
Progressive massive fibrosis may occur in simple or accelerated silicosis, but is more common in the accelerated form. Progressive massive fibrosis results from severe scarring and leads to obliteration of normal lung structures.
Causes, incidence, and risk factors Return to top
Silica is a common, naturally-occurring crystal. It is found in most rock beds and forms dust during mining, quarrying, tunneling, and work with many metal ores. Silica is a main component of sand, so glass workers and sand-blasters also receive heavy exposure to silica.
Risk factors include any work that includes exposure to silica dust. Mining, stone cutting, quarrying, road and building construction, work with abrasives manufacturing, sand blasting and many other occupations and hobbies involve exposure to silica.
Intense exposure to silica may result in disease in a year or less, but it usually takes at least 10 or 15 years of exposure before symptoms develop. Silicosis has become less common since the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) instituted regulations requiring the use of protective equipment which limit the amount of silica dust inhaled.
Symptoms Return to top
Chronic cough
Shortness of breath with exercise, usually in patients who have progressive massive fibrosis
Additional symptoms that may be associated with this disease, especially in acute silicosis:
Fever
Cough
Weight loss
Severe breathing difficulty
Signs and tests Return to top
Your health care provider will take a careful medical history that includes many questions about your occupations (past and present), your hobbies, and other activities that may have exposed you to excessive silica. A physical exam will also be performed. Diagnostic tests to confirm the diagnosis and exclude other diseases that may appear similar include:
Chest x-ray
Pulmonary function tests
Purified protein derivative (PPD) skin test (for tuberculosis)
Treatment Return to top
There is no specific treatment for silicosis. Removal of the source of silica exposure is important to prevent further worsening of the disease. Supportive treatment includes cough suppression medications, bronchodilators, and oxygen if needed. Antibiotics are prescribed for respiratory infections as needed.
Other considerations for treatment include limiting continued exposure to irritants, smoking cessation, and routine tuberculosis skin testing.
People with silicosis are at high risk for developing tuberculosis (TB). Silica is believed to interfere with the body's immune response to the bacteria that causes TB. Yearly skin testing to check for exposure to TB is recommended. Treatment with anti-TB drugs is recommended for people with a positive skin test. Any change in the appearance of the chest x-ray may indicate TB.
Hope this helps. If there is serious concern, an specific Industrial Hygiene survey can be conducted to actually measure your exposure over the course of a workday to quantify the concentrations, but this would be pretty expensice, and possibly just a phone call to a Certified Industrial Hygienist could help clarify this for what you do in your job.
You could slip on an inexpensive paper dust mask when you brush down a table since you have to brush down so many tables when you work. You can find them for sale in many places (Lowes, Home Depot, Walmart, K-mart etc.). Buy a pack of them and you could use one mask for quite a while before you had to throw it away. They are white filter paper with 2 yellow bands to hold them in place. I wouldn't worry about what someone might say when they see you using the mask i'd be more concerned about keeping that blue chalk dust out of my lungs.cuetechasaurus said:
LWW said:
True, but I'm not old. I'm wondering if my concern about the dust is worth bringing up to my boss.
If there were a health risk from long term exposure to chalk dust, I would have been dead 20 years ago.
I work for an Industrial Painting company and we constantly have to remind our employees about health risks from airborne dust and vapors. We require our employees to wear North half masks during painting applications as well as during surface prep (grinding dust, sandblast dust, etc). It is never good to ingest or inhale anything bad into your body, whether it be into the lungs or mouth. That is a why on lead jobs on breaks, lunch, after work you are required to wash your hands and face, change out of your work clothes and take a shower if it is a large job that requires it by law. Lead is extremely bad for you at high levels and can not only affect you but your family.
Same reason the people who remove asbestos have problems with their lungs. If I remember correctly the airborne dust particles of asbestos are smaller than the air capillaries in your lungs so they get lodged in there and can't be coughed out. Over time your lungs lose the ability to properly create oxygen.
I have seen the chalk dust fly away from a brush and fly into the air. It can't be good to breathe it but just like breathing in a dust storm you should eventually be able to hack up any that gets in your lungs, but don't quote me on that. Nothing like big black hay boogers after a day of bucking hay. Hay dust is terrible and nasty to cough up.
Same reason the people who remove asbestos have problems with their lungs. If I remember correctly the airborne dust particles of asbestos are smaller than the air capillaries in your lungs so they get lodged in there and can't be coughed out. Over time your lungs lose the ability to properly create oxygen.
I have seen the chalk dust fly away from a brush and fly into the air. It can't be good to breathe it but just like breathing in a dust storm you should eventually be able to hack up any that gets in your lungs, but don't quote me on that. Nothing like big black hay boogers after a day of bucking hay. Hay dust is terrible and nasty to cough up.