Mold infestation is a serious health threat to residents and workers
By Phillip Fry
Huge mold growth in a rental apartment. The landlord refused to take care of this serious health threat. The walls will need to be removed
and discarded.
Many property owners, landlords,
employers, and relatives
of mold victims in
Canada, the USA, and
worldwide often question or minimize
the proven and serious health threat
arising from exposure to elevated levels
of indoor mold infestation.
All molds have the potential to
cause health effects. They can produce
allergens that can trigger reactions or
even asthma attacks in people allergic
to mold. Others are known to produce
potent toxins and/or irritants, according
to the US Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA). A number of
commonly found species are, in fact,
toxic mold, a description applied to
any mold that produces mycotoxins in
its spores. Stachybotrys (black mold),
Aspergillus, and Penicillium are three
of the most dangerous and commonly
found indoor toxic molds.
Mycotoxins are cytotoxic, meaning
they have the capacity to pass through
the human cellular wall and disrupt
certain cellular processes, potentially
causing serious health damage to
workers and customers. Studies on animals
and cell cultures in labs have
found toxic effects from various
microbial agents, raising concerns
about whether these same agents
growing in buildings can cause illness
in people, according to the 2004 mold
health report from the Institute of
Medicine (U.S. Government’s National
Academy of Sciences).
Health Symptoms
Fungi can cause health problems to
both humans and animals by several
different biological mechanisms:
infections, allergic or hypersensitivity
reactions, irritant reactions, or toxic
reactions, according to a 2004
University of Connecticut Health
Center article.
If exposed to elevated levels of
indoor mold, some residents and
workers can experience one or more
of the most common health symptoms:
allergies, asthma, bleeding
lungs, breathing difficulties, cancer,
central nervous system problems,
recurring colds, chronic coughing,
coughing up with blood, dandruff
problems (chronic) that do not go
away despite use of anti-dandruff
shampoos, dermatitis, skin rashes,
diarrhea, and/or eye and vision problems,
fatigue (chronic, excessive, or
continued) and/or general malaise, flu
symptoms (chronic), sudden hair loss,
headaches, hemorrhagic pneumonitis,
hives, hypersensitivity pneumonitis,
irritability, itching (of the nose,
mouth, eyes, throat, skin or any other
area), kidney failure, learning difficulties
or mental dysfunction or personality
changes, memory loss or
memory difficulties.
Other symptoms could include
open skin sores and lacerations,
peripheral nervous system effects, redness
of the sclera (whites of your eyes),
runny nose (rhinitis) or thick, green
slime coming out of nose (from sinus
cavities), seizures, sinus congestion,
sinus problems, and chronic sinusitis,
skin redness, sleep disorders, sneezing
fits, sore throat, tremors (shaking),
verbal dysfunction (trouble in speaking),
vertigo (feelings of dizziness,
lightheadedness, faintness and unsteadiness),
and vomiting.
Health Studies
"Where is the proof?" ask skeptical
sellers of homes with mold, landlords,
employers, and unaffected relatives of
victims. There is actually abundant
evidence about the serious impact of
mycotoxins and mold exposure in
human disease. Medical studies in
both the military and agricultural environments
have discovered that significant
health problems can readily arise
from the inhalation of elevated levels
of fungal spores and toxins by soldiers
and farmers.
Laboratory studies in animals and
at the cellular level provide supporting
evidence for direct toxicity of fungal
spores and mycotoxins in mammalian
lungs (University of Connecticut
Health Center report in 2004). As to
asthma, a health study by the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health links
adult-onset asthma to workplace mold
exposure.
The Finnish workplace study estimated
the percentage of adult-onset
asthma attributable to workplace mold
exposure to be 35% (Reported in
Environmental Health Perspectives,
May, 2002). A European Community
respiratory health survey in 2002
reported that asthma patients experience
more significant symptoms after
they become sensitized to molds such
as Alternaria and Cladosporium
species, and to dust mites.
Scientific evidence links mold and
other factors related to damp conditions
in homes and buildings to asthma
symptoms in some people with the
chronic asthma, as well as to coughing,
wheezing, and upper respiratory tract
symptoms in otherwise healthy people,
stated the Institute of Medicine report.
“In addition, the wetness may cause
chemicals and particles to be released
from building materials. A rare ailment
known as hypersensitivity pneumonitis
also was associated with indoor mold
exposure in susceptible people,"
reported the Institute of Medicine.
"Recent studies have confirmed
what scientists have suspected for
years: that asthma is an immune system
reaction to dust, pollution and
other allergens (e.g., airborne mold
spores) in the environment, which trigger
spasms and tightening of the airways
of some people who also have a
genetic predisposition," reported
Newsweek, "Waiting to Inhale," March
14, 2005.
Conclusions
"Any person at risk from mold
should not be in an area that is likely to
be contaminated. If you or your family
members have health problems after
exposure to mold, contact your doctor
or other health care provider," advises
the Centers for Disease Control.
Residents and workers often differ
significantly (from co-residents and
co-workers) in their sensitivity and
reaction to exposure. Even the smell of
mold can make some residents and
workers sick.
Thus, if one or a few residents,
employees, or customers experience
one or more possible health symptoms,
the property owner, landlord or
employer should still inspect and mold
test the residential or work premises
for the health protection of both the
mold-sensitive residents and employees,
as well as others who may ultimately
be harmed from time-cumulative
mold exposure.
Homes and workplaces should be
carefully and thoroughly inspected and
mold tested if there are: (1) significant
amounts of visible mold; (2) serious
water leaks, flooding problems, or
high indoor humidity; and (3) residents,
employees, or business customers
(such as hotel guests) report
experiencing one or more possible
health symptoms.
