Health Effects of Mold

In general, common molds should not concern you if you and your family members are healthy. If, however, you suffer from some chronic diseases and conditions, you might be sensitive to mold exposure. 

How can mold affect your health? In case you have asthma or allergies, it is possible to experience itching and skin rash, cough, running nose, eye irritations and overall aggravation of asthma. Persons who suffer from immune suppression might be at increased risk of mold infection. If you live in a dry climate, your environment is still not immune to infestation.

According to some researches, the exposure to mold might have more serious effects, such as fever, dizziness, fatigue, vomiting, diarrhea, respiratory dysfunction, flu-like symptoms, excessive and frequent nose bleeds and even liver damage. But, such symptoms should disappear once when a person is no longer exposed to mold.

Another source of potential health problems caused by exposure to mold are mVOCs, microbial volatile organic compounds. These substances are produced by fungi and released directly into the air, usually they give off unpleasant and strong odors. Exposure to mVOCs can cause eye irritations, respiratory problems and other allergy-like symptoms.

In case you think you have an indoor allergy, you should determine whether you are allergic to mold or not. There are medical tests to determine mold allergy, they are performed on blood or skin. Skin tests are better, because they are sensitive, quick, more reliable and cheaper. In case you find out you are allergic to mold or mold affects your health and make your health condition worse, mold remediation might be the solution to your problems.

Consult your family doctor or general health care provider if you are concerned about mold exposure. Your doctor will decide whether you should see a specialist (allergist, infectious disease physician, pulmonary physician, occupational physician) to give you proper medical care and tips to overcome your current health condition.