Up until about 2 weeks ago I didn't know a lot about mould, but after doing a mould cleaning course my eyes were opened. Below, I'm going to provide some info about mould and health problems it can cause, and I can't stress the importance of dealing with it promptly and properly.
Mould is everywhere! It has its own kingdom, the fungi kingdom.
It’s a natural part of life and its purpose is to break down organic material, which it does very well. It grows everywhere from the Arctic to the tropics.
40% of new builds in Australia suffer from poor ventilation (the air envelop in the design is too tight).
ALL ABOUT MOULD
The only way to stop mould from growing inside a building is to stop the source of the water event.
All mould needs to grow is dust and 55% humidity and it will grow in 48 hours.
The spores of Mould are microscopic, 3 – 5 microns wide. 1 strand of hair is 70 microns - which makes them very very small.
1 square inch of visible mould is 65 million mould spore – and you wouldn’t necessarily smell it!
Facts about mould
1. If you can smell the mould then it's already in high concentrations. 6. It’s
an airborne spore and will spread throughout a building.
All it takes is 1 mould spore to start a colony.
Mould can also grow in us – our eyes, lungs, nose and ears (yuck right?)
Mould with ‘’fruiting’’ spores produce Mycotoxins which thrive in moist
humid areas and are airborne.
This means when there is a flood in the house or a leak in the roof that
stays wet for 48 hours – it’s a perfect breeding ground for mould.
Mould Symptoms
If there’s visible mould in a building or a damp musty smell, chances are
there’s significant mould growth present.
Cold and flu symptoms
Hay fever
Bronchitis
Asthma
Pneumonia
Eczema
Red and inflamed eyes
Lack of energy
Brain fog
And more...
If there’s visible mould in a building or a damp musty smell, chances are
there’s significant mould growth present.
Anyone who just seems to be constantly unwell may be living with
mould. It’s worth checking out.
24% of the population is missing the immune response genes (HLA-DR)
which means when these people are in a mould environment they
have a consistent inflammatory response which can impact on any
system within the body.
Anyone who’s immune system is compromised is vulnerable. This
includes the very young and the very old.
Children’s lungs don’t mature until they are 20 years old.
There’s an online visual test that can be done for a small fee to see if
you have a mould related illness. It takes about 10 minutes.
Go to: www.survivingmold.com and take the Visual Acuity Test
Note: This does not replace seeing a qualified health professional.
These are the questions to ask yourself if you think you may have e a mould issue
affecting your health:
Do I feel better when I’m out of my home/office?
Do I sleep better?
Do I breathe easier?
Do I have ongoing coughs and colds that never seem to clear up?
When I go on vacation do I feel better? Generally we feel good when
we’re on vacation but this goes beyond that...
If any of the answers are yes, Mould may be the invisible problem.
This is some basic information for you, there will be updates to come as we learn more about it and grow in our learning. We have added mould cleaning to our services give us a call today to organise an inspection and clean.
