October 24, 2008

Allergy 101: Mold

Have Your Seasonal Allergies Become a Year-Round Menace?

Perhaps the problem is that your allergies are not caused by pollen alone. When others find that their symptoms are waning at the end of the autumn season, your's continue to keep you sniffling and sneezing throughout the winter. If this scenario sounds familiar, the problem might not be pollen allergies, but mold allergies.

Mold has a growing season during the late summer and fall, so you might notice your symptoms peaking in severity around this time of year. However, mold can also take up residence in your home, causing your allergic reaction to flare up at any given point. Moist weather will cause mold spores that were tracked into your home during the summer to sprout and pollute the air indoors.

Beyond causing allergies, molds are often the cause of many other health concerns, ranging from headaches to cancer. It is common for mold growing indoors to go unnoticed for years. This is because it prefers dark, damp, out of sight areas where it can grow undisturbed.

If you suspect that you are allergic to mold, this article is your beginner's guide to battling mold allergies. Not only will you learn about mold and why it drives your allergies crazy, but also get some tips to keep your home mold-free so that you can breathe easy.

What Exactly Are Mold Allergies? Mold Allergies - Boy Wiping Nose.jpg

Molds are microscopic fungi that are key in the breaking down of decaying materials. All that mold requires to grow is moisture and a surface to feed on. Mold grows in small colonies, producing millions of tiny spores, which act like tiny eggs that are carried on the wind. Not only to spores plant new mold colonies wherever they land, but they are very easily inhaled and cause allergic reactions.

Common places where mold is found are in the folds of shower curtains, on decaying food and in flower pots. These particular spots makes mold feel at home - but often mold growth is impossible to see. This is because mold flourishes inside walls, under wall to wall carpet padding and dark corners in your basement or crawlspace. For this reason, sometimes people cannot find the source of their allergies - but when the spores produced by mold hit the delicate skin inside your nose and throat, symptoms quickly follow.

Allergies are caused by your immune system as it tries to fight off what it thinks are dangerous intruders and defend your body. Unfortunately, this overactive immune response is what causes the uncomfortable symptoms associated with allergies. During an allergic reaction, your body mistakes the mold spores for a more dangerous intruder like a virus or parasite. In an attempt to protect you from the invading mold spores, your immune systems throws everything it can at the problem-causing you to have watery eyes, runny nose and stuffed up head (all of which are methods of flushing out the allergens).

Your immune system causes your cells to release tiny packets of chemicals, which are supposed to attack the intruder (in this case, harmless spores), but the large dose of these chemicals causes inflammation instead of relief. This causes your head or lungs to feel tight and makes your eyes and throat itch and burn.

Which Types of Molds Am I Allergic To?

When it comes to mold, there are hundreds of varieties, but only a dozen or so of these cause allergy symptoms. The outdoor growing season for molds starts in the summer and ends late in the fall. During this time, they release their spores, which are easily smuggled into your house on shoes or blown indoors through open windows. It is when molds invade your home that they cause allergy symptoms year-round. In addition, they can also cause people with allergies to other elements like pollen or animal dander to become sensitize to spores.

Here are some of the worst allergy-causing mold varieties:

Alternaria - Spores cause severe reactions and is often growing indoors on carpets, textiles and window sills.
Cladosporium (Hormodendrum) - causes skin rashes and irritation to the upper and lower respiratory tract as well as extrinsic (immediate onset) asthma.
Aspergillus - causes not only allergies but several allergy related diseases (including fibrosis or permanent lung damage.
Penicillium - causes allergies as well as other diseases like mucorosis when the spores are concentrated in an indoor environment.
Helmin thosporium - causes upper respiratory tract irritation and allergic reactions.
Epicoccum - causes upper respiratory tract irritation and allergic reactions.
Fusarium - causes sinusitis as well as other serious diseases and can affect the central nervous system.
Mucor - causes skin rashes and lower respiratory tract irritation. Also has been reported to enter the body through open cuts.
Rhizopus - causes allergies as well as infections and is growing most often in old food, fruit, nuts and house dust.
Aureobasidium (Pullularia) - causes allergies and is often growing on caulk or window frames in bathrooms, laundry rooms and kitchens.

Symptoms of Mold Allergies:

Runny Nose and Nasal Congestion
Itchy, Watery Eyes
Sneezing
Cough
Burning Sensation in Throat or Lungs
Sinus Pressure and Facial Pain
Sinusitis, or Chronic Sinus Infections
Skin Rashes or Hives
Reduced Lung Capacity or Difficulty Breathing
Unpleasant Taste in Mouth
Nose Bleeds

Who is Allergic to Mold?

There are a few main factors that determine whether a person will be prone to developing mold spore allergies:

Hereditary: If members of your family currently have or had problems with allergies, you are more likely to have allergies as well. If both of your parents are allergic to mold (or anything else for that matter), you have a 75% chance of developing mold allergies as well. If only one parent - or relatives on only one side of your family-has allergies, your chances of being allergic to mold drops to 50%. Individuals with asthma are also more likely to be allergic to mold, especially if they are also allergic to other allergens, like dust mites or animal dander.
Exposure: People who live in humid climates or areas prone to flooding are more likely to find mold growing in their homes. Depending on the age of the house, layout, ventilation and cleaning habits, one house may have a far higher amount of mold spores in the air than another. The higher the concentration of mold spores indoors, the better the chances of developing allergic sensitivity from exposure. Outdoor mold can also be a problem, but it is the year-round indoor mold that causes the most trouble when it comes to developing allergies. Occupations with high mold exposure are: farming, dairy work, logging, baking, millwork, carpentry, greenhouse work, winemaking and furniture repair.
Age: Mold allergies and prevalent in all age groups, but young children with a family history of allergies or mold exposure are more likely to develop mold allergies.

Top 3 Ways to Avoid Mold Allergies

Eliminate Damp Areas: The one essential element that mold needs to grow inside your home is moisture - so if you remove the source of moisture, you will keep mold from gaining a foothold. Th way to do this is to make sure that there are no leaks in plumbing or around chalk, grout or bath and kitchen fixtures. Install a sub pump in your basement if storms cause even minor flooding. Ventilate your bathroom while you are taking a shower and up to 30 minutes afterwards. Mold Allergies - Stack of Moldy Bagels.jpg Make sure that you close you shower curtain when you're done to make sure that it dries completely. A closed shower curtain stores moisture in all the folds of the plastic and is one of the first places you will see mold. Lastly, run a dehumidifier to take excess moisture out of the air. The less available moisture, the less hospitable your home is to mold!

Don't Sniff, Just Toss: The classic method of checking on whether a forgotten container of food is still good or not is opening the lid and sniffing it. Next time you need to do a feshness-check, just take a look at the expiration date or take a quick peek inside. If the date on the package has passed or you suspect that something is going bad - just throw it away. If you can't bear to part with potentially good food, make sure that you enlist the nose of someone who does not have allergies. Taking a whiff of old foods (especially milk and dairy products, fruit or vegetables) get the mold spores that have concentrated inside food containers straight into your nasal cavity and lungs - it's a recipe for an allergy or asthma attack.

Use HEPA Filters Throughout the House: HEPA filters are recommended by allergists and doctors as the most effective method of removing airborne allergens before they reach your nose and lungs. Air Filters like those made by Dynamic Air Cleaners use a combination of HEPA filters and activated carbon to remove even the smallest allergens. Both HEPA and carbon filters are completely same for asthma sufferers, so often find electrostatic and o-zone creating filters cause their lungs more harm than good. Dynamic panel filters slide into existing slots on your furnace or air conditioning and remove 99% of mold spores before they hit the rest of your home.

Can Mold Cause More than Just Allergies?

There are many species of molds that have been proven to cause more than just allergies. Molds like Stachybotrys and Chaetomium can cause a myriad of serious health conditions, a few of which include chronic bronchitis, learning disabilities, mental deficiencies, heart problems, cancer, multiple sclerosis, chronic fatigue, lupus, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple chemical sensitivity and bleeding within the lungs.

The good new is that the same method used to remove mold and alleviate allergies will also protect you against some of the other conditions caused by inhaling mold spores. You can cut down on the number of mold colonies inside your house through simple cleaning techniques.

Be careful: if your home has been flooded for over 24 hours, or if you can see more than 2 square feet of mold, please do not try to clean up the mold by yourself! At this point, mold can become quite dangerous, so contact a mold clean-up specialist.

For Light Mold Clean-Up or Preventative Measures After Small Floods

To avoid exposure to spores, you may want to wear an N-95 respirator (available at many hardware stores for $12-$25). Make sure that the respirator fits correctly!
Wear long gloves-it is recommended that they come up to the middle of the fore arm. If you are using bleach or other strong cleaner detergent, you should select gloves made from natural rubber, neoprene, nitrile, polyurethane, or PVC.
Wear goggles that do not have ventilation holes to avoid getting mold or mold spores in your eyes (what an unpleasant thought).
Use a wet/dry vacuum to rid areas of water-or run a dehumidifier.
Absorbent or porous materials such as carpets and tile grout may need to be removed-in some situations, you can have carpets cleaned, but make sure that they are completely dried afterwards.
Using a mixture of water and bleach (1 cup bleach per gallon of water), wipe off all hard surfaces and dry them completely. The bleach will kill the mold, but not necessarily remove it. After using bleach, scrub hard surfaces with soap and water to remove the mold residue.
Do not chalk or paint moldy or damp surfaces, as it is likely to peel.

Common Questions about Mold Allergies:

How do I know if I have mold in my house?:

Mold Allergies - Moldy Window Sill.jpg There are several different methods to find out if you have mold in your home. Many signs of mold can be found visually, like spots of discoloration or "fuzzy" patches. A sure sign that you had mold is that "musty" smell that often occurs in basements, which is caused by the odor of certain varieties of mold spores. If you cannot see or smell any signs of mold, having your home tested will help you determine if mold is hiding in your home. There are many different professional mold testing services as well as do-it-yourself test kits that will help you determine if you have more mold spores in your home than is healthy.

Do only older homes have mold problems?:

No; older homes can sometimes harbor less mold spores than newly constructed homes. Though older homes are more likely to have older and possibly decaying wood, grout and carpeting that mold will feed on, newer homes are just as susceptible to mold growth. In the case of new, energy-efficient homes, their almost air tight construction causes allergens like mold to be condensed, whereas drafty, older homes allow the number of mold spores to dissipate.

When is it time to get professional help with mold?:

There are 3 instances where is is important to contact a professional mold remediation service:

If you can see black mold (which could be the highly toxic Stachybotrys mold)
If you have had 24 or more hours of standing flood water in your home
If mold is covering more than 2 square feet in your home

Check your yellow pages under "Fire and Water Damage Restoration" or "Mold Remediation" for local clean-up services.

Is there a way to treat my mold allergies?:

Over the counter allergy medications will help with the symptoms caused by mold allergies. If you have a severe reaction to mold, you might want to visit an allergist order to find out the best treatment for your allergies.

How can I tell is a certain day will be worse than another for my mold allergies?

Along with pollen counts, often the mold spore count for your area is available through websites like theAsthmaCenter.org. This will help you to determine which days will impact your allergies.

Filed under Mold, Chemical Sensitivity, Allergies, Asthma, Air Quality by Dan Buglio