What is mold? Why is mold a problem?

Question: What is mold? How does mold cause health problems?

Answer: Mold is a fungus that can grow everywhere. When it is outdoors, it breaks down dead trees, plants, and leaves. When it gets into your home and starts to grow (due to amenable environments such as moisture and heat or moisture and cold), it causes health problems.

When mold enters your home and you inhale it or touch it, it can irritate your eyes, skin, and throat.  The list of health problems associated with mold are the following: joint pain, migraines, heart issues and depression are standard with long-term mold exposure.

People without mold allergies may be lucky enough to have limited health problems such as headaches, congestion, sneezing, fatigue and skin irritation, but really, nobody is built to live with constant exposure to mold or mildew. Even those with low sensitivity to mold will experience fatigue and general malaise.

What You Can Do

It's best to remove mold from your home. Because safe mold removal is difficult to accomplish on your own, you will want to hire a professional restoration company that will seal off the part of your home affected by mold from parts of your home not affected. After mold is removed, you will want to take steps to prevent recurrence of mold growth. Keep the area dry, using a dehumidifier, and watch for signs of mold regrowth. If a leak caused the moisture that was the stimulus for the original mold growth, be sure to fix the leak.

Learn More

Read this article to better understand health problems associated with exposure to mold.