Why is breathing mold bad

If you have mould or damp it's important to find out why you have excess moisture in your home. When you know what's causing the damp, you can make sure your home is repaired or take steps to limit the moisture in the air. You may need to get a professional to remove mould for you, but if it's only a small amount you may be able to remove it yourself. Read more in How do I get rid of damp and mould? Page last reviewed: 8 August Next review due: 8 August Home Common health questions Lifestyle Back to Lifestyle.

Can damp and mould affect my health? If you have an extensive amount of mold and you do not think you can manage the cleanup on your own, you may want to contact a professional who has experience in cleaning mold in buildings and homes.

These decisions have to be made individually. If you believe you are ill because of exposure to mold in a building, you should consult your physician to determine the appropriate action to take. If you can see or smell mold, a health risk may be present.

You do not need to know the type of mold growing in your home, and CDC does not recommend or perform routine sampling for molds. No matter what type of mold is present, you should remove it.

Since the effect of mold on people can vary greatly, either because of the amount or type of mold, you cannot rely on sampling and culturing to know your health risk. Standards for judging what is an acceptable, tolerable or normal quantity of mold have not been established.

Sampling for mold can be expensive, and standards for judging what is and what is not an acceptable quantity of mold have not been set. The best practice is to remove the mold and work to prevent future growth. If you do decide to pay for environmental sampling for molds, before the work starts, you should ask the consultants who will do the work to establish criteria for interpreting the test results. They should tell you in advance what they will do or what recommendations they will make based on the sampling results.

Hazards presented by molds that may produce mycotoxins should be considered the same as other common molds which can grow in your house. Not all fungi produce mycotoxins and even those that do will not do so under all surface or environmental conditions. Mold growth, which often looks like spots, can be many different colors, and can smell musty.

Color is not an indication of how dangerous a mold may be. Any mold should be removed and the moisture source that helped it grow should be removed. There are very few reports that toxigenic molds found inside homes can cause unique or rare health conditions such as pulmonary hemorrhage or memory loss.

These case reports are rare, and a causal link between the presence of the toxigenic mold and these conditions has not been proven. Skip directly to site content Skip directly to page options Skip directly to A-Z link. Section Navigation. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Syndicate.

Basic Facts about Mold and Dampness. Minus Related Pages. How common is mold in buildings? How do molds get in the indoor environment and how do they grow?

How do you know if you have a mold problem? Large mold infestations can usually be seen or smelled. How do molds affect people? Who is most at risk for health problems associated with exposure to mold? How do you keep mold out of buildings and homes? Inside your home you can control mold growth by: Controlling humidity levels; Promptly fixing leaky roofs, windows, and pipes; Thoroughly cleaning and drying after flooding; Ventilating shower, laundry, and cooking areas.

An air conditioner or dehumidifier will help you keep the level low. Bear in mind that humidity levels change over the course of a day with changes in the moisture in the air and the air temperature, so you will need to check the humidity levels more than once a day. This content does not have an Arabic version. Overview If you have a mold allergy, your immune system overreacts when you breathe in mold spores.

Request an Appointment at Mayo Clinic. Share on: Facebook Twitter. Show references Mold allergy. Accessed Feb. Mold allergy. Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America. A brief guide to mold, moisture and your home. Environmental Protection Agency. DeShazo RD, et al. Pharmacotherapy of allergic rhinitis. Ahasic AM, et al. Building-related illness and building-related symptoms. Basic facts about mold and dampness. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Sultesz M, et al.