Mold Inspections

                                      

 
Is your home affecting your health??

Mold is a naturally occurring, necessary substance in our environment. It breaks down dead organic matter such as dead leaves. On the inside of a home, however, it is a much different case. Indoors, mold can make you or other members of your household sick.

Molds are microscopic fungal organisms. They grow as networks of interlocking filaments that spread on and into organic matter, leading to its decomposition. When clusters of these filaments become large enough, they are visible as fuzzy growths of mold or mildew. Bread mold is a familiar example.

Mold lives by secreting enzymes that break down the organic matter on which the mold is living, making it available as a nutrient for the mold. This breaking-down action is what makes mold damaging to household items such as paper, fabric, or leather. Molds reproduce by forming spores, which travel through the air, settle on other plant or animal organic material, and grow into new clusters of filaments. The mold spores travel over large distances, and are often more numerous than the pollen grains of plants. Proteins in the secretions of the mold filaments, and possibly in the mold spores, are capable of causing allergy in some people.

Where are molds found?

Mold can appear cottony, velvety, grainy, or leathery, and it can be any color, including white, pink, yellow, green, brown, gray, or black. Molds are found primarily in warm, dark, and damp locations. Unlike plants, which use energy from the sun to produce food, molds obtain their energy by digesting other organic matter. To do so, they need moisture. Molds grow out of doors, and, if the humidity is high enough, indoors as well. They do not have the clearly defined seasons that pollens do, but are at their peak during months of high humidity, and are absent in outdoor air only if there is snow on the ground. They can grow on grass and on the bark of trees, and are plentiful in fallen leaves and other decaying vegetation. Indoors, they live in areas of high humidity, such as basements or poorly ventilated bathrooms.

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Saturday, September 5, 2009


Fourth Hospitalization due to Toxic Mold Exposure

 
 
 

Our youngest son was admtted to the St. Louis Children's Hospital while on a trip to visit family last week.  He was diagnosed with pneumonia for a fourth time.  He was also diganosed with Moderate to Severe Persistent Uncontrolled Asthma which is what causes the pneumonia to form.  This nightmare started when he was exposed to toxic mold in a house we rented from the time of his birth until he was nearly two years old.  His first hospitalization and asthma attack ocurred when he was 18 months old.  He is now four years old and has been hospitalized four times. The type of toxic mold that caused him to have this severe form of asthma is called Chaetomium.  Please read through our blog to learn more about our story.  We hope that by telling our story, we can help other people.

(the picture above shows how much of a struggle it was for our son to breathe even while on oxygen)

( The story above was from toxicmoldstories.blogspot.com )
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       Headaches                        Black Mold                       Red watery eyes

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Here is a really good article on diagnosing mold poisoning from eHOW Health:

How to Test a Person to See If He Has Mold Poisioning


By Ellen Topness, eHow Contributor


How to Test a Person to See If He Has Mold Poisioningthumbnail
Mold can make people sick.

Mold poisoning is caused by mycotoxins produced by toxic mold. These mycotoxins damage the body's myelin, the membrane that protects your body's nerves. Since nerves are vital for most body processes, mold poisoning can drastically impair your health. Diagnosing this condition is difficult, but there are several tests that can help determine if mold is responsible for your symptoms.

Related Searches:


Difficulty:
Moderate

Instructions


    • 1

      Evaluate the symptoms you have that make you suspect mold poisoning. The Allergyscape website reports that mold poisoning can cause memory loss, anxiety, personality disorders, breathing difficulties, nose bleeds and abdominal pain. Additional symptoms include hair loss, skin rashes, fatigue, headaches, cough, numbness in extremities, tremors and fibromyalgia.

    • 2

      Document these symptoms to bring to your physician to request further testing. Many doctors will not test for mold poisoning and many insurance companies will not cover the costs of testing. Determine whether your doctor is willing to explore the possibility of mold poisoning. If he's not, the School Mold Help website has a list of doctors in many communities that will perform these tests.

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    • 3

      Ask the physician to test your blood for specific mold antibodies. The presence of these antibodies only show that you have been exposed to mold but do not render a diagnosis of mold poisoning. You can also request a blood test for the level of biotoxins in your body. If you've been exposed to mold, your blood will contain more biotoxins. The Biotoxin Illness website has a list of doctors who will test for these.

    • 4

      Ask your physician to order some general tests that may show abnormal results when you have mold poisoning. According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, one of these is a simple white blood cell count. An elevated white blood count might indicate exposure to mold. The spirometric test measures lung function, which can decrease with mold poisoning.

    • 5

      The Visual Contrast Sensitivity test (VCS) is more specific for mold poisoning. You can take the test online at the Chronic Neurotoxins website. Gather these results and work with your health professional to decide if you are suffering from mold poisoning and to come up with an effective treatment plan.


Read more: How to Test a Person to See If He Has Mold Poisioning | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_6328858_test-person-see-mold-poisioning.html#ixzz1jwxMPfxD

Here is the link to the article : http://www.ehow.com/how_6328858_test-person-see-mold-poisioning.html

Have me call you.

Is your home affecting your health??