Dangers of Mould - Health and Home Improvement Information

Having the right information can improve your chances of making the right decisions in home improvements and if those home improvements also help with the health of your family you just know you have made the right decision.

Stachybotrys Chartarum (atra)

A genus of mould that grows on water damaged materials such as ceiling tiles, insulation, wallpaper, wood, sheet rock, and can be found in dust from contaminated building materials.
If you have moisture damage and/or mould growth that is extensive, contact your city or county health department for assistance in assessing and mitigating the problems.

Stachybotrys is a greenish-black fungus found worldwide that colonizes particularly well in high-cellulose material, such as straw, hay, paper, dust, lint, and cellulose-containing building material such as fibre board, and gypsum board that becomes chronically moist or water damage due to excessive humidity, water leaks, condensation or flooding . Stachybotrys chartarum grows and produces spores in the temperature range of 2°-40°C (36°-104°F). It is also capable of producing several toxins, however, many researchers still know little about the temperature and moisture conditions under which these toxins are produced. It has been postulated that moist high-cellulose and low-nitrogen materials at a temperature range of 0-40°C can provide sufficient condition for production of Stachybotrys toxins. Surfaces exposed to air with a relative humidity above 55% and subjected to temperature fluctuations are ideal for toxin production. Individuals with chronic exposure to the toxin produced by this fungus reported cold and flu symptoms, sore throats, diarrhoea, headaches, fatigue, and dermatitis.  Health and home improvement solutions from Weathershield Cyprus
 

Clinical Information about Stachybotrys

* Produces mycotoxins that can result in serious health problems

* Produces a component that paralyzes sperm at low doses

May cause bleeding in the lungs of infants and those with weak immune systems
Many a parent has heard their budding Einstein come with the complaint "school makes me sick". Dilbert fans know that it doesn't take much in the land of office cubicles to make an employee headachy and tired, or for desk jockeys to be so unfit they can barely get to the water fountain without being out of breath.
Dr. Berlin Nelson says it may not be all in our heads. It could be your building that's making you sick.
The culprit is a mould fungi named Stachybotrys. It is particularly likely to turn up in a house or building that has been flooded, or has sustained water damage.
"It's become notorious as a toxic mould that can cause health problems in humans and animals", says Nelson, a professor at North Dakota State University.
There are many microbes in the environment that produce toxic substances, but in their natural state, they are generally not a serious problem for humans. However, in the case of this particular mould, where it can become concentrated, it produces toxins that could make you sick.
Nelson thinks that public awareness of the potential problem needs to be heightened. 

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The Stachybotrys mold, shown in a magnified view, can cause sick-building syndrome

It doesn't take massive flooding either. The mould can get started from broken pipes, roof leaks, sewage backups, and moisture condensation.
The Stachybotrys mould produces a powerful mycotoxin — just touching it can give you a rash — and scientists don't know what might be considered a safe exposure level. Many other kinds of mould fungi, including Aspergillus, Penicillium, and Cladosporium also produce mycotoxins, some of which are identical to compounds produced by Stachybotrys mould.
The mould is most common on the paper covering of sheet rock but can also be found on wallpaper, ceiling tiles, paper products, carpets with natural fibers, paper covering on insulated pipes, insulation material, on wood and on general organic debris.
"Because leaks can occur within walls, below flooring, and above covered ceiling areas, the mould may grow profusely, but not be readily visible", says Nelson. "Homeowners and building managers need to be alerted that if there has been water damage, this is something that you need to pay attention to".

This mould is a serious enough health threat that Nelson recommends only trained professionals should be used to get rid of it.

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The toxic mold Stachybotrys grows especially well on water-damaged sheet rock.
Stachybotrys in a petri dish
Stachybotrys spores are microscopic
Mould growth behind wallpaper

Mould May Lead to Croup in Infants
Respiratory Problems Linked to Early Fungus Exposure
By Jean Lerche Davis
WebMD Medical News Archive
July 17, 2003

Babies growing up in damp homes where mould and mildew are present develop more respiratory illnesses such as croup, pneumonia, and bronchitis.
The finding appears in the July issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
Damp living conditions have long been linked with children's lower respiratory problems. But the role of mould and mildew in the home has never been clear, writes lead researcher Paul C. Stark, PhD, a professor of environmental health with Harvard University School of Public Health.
It's an important issue, since young children with respiratory infections have significantly worse problems later on, he writes. Children's immune systems develop in the first year of life.
In their study, investigators followed 499 infants during their first year -- all children of parents with asthma and allergies. Every two months, a researcher checked with the child's caregiver to see if there had been pneumonia, croup, bronchitis, or other respiratory problems.
Mould and air samples were taken from each home throughout the study. Researchers found that 324 homes had high levels of more than one type of fungi.

When factored with other environmental information, such as number of siblings, whether siblings attended day care, water damage in the home, and number of units in their building, they found that children in homes with the most fungi -- mould, mildew, or water damage -- had an 86% higher risk of developing upper respiratory infections in the first year.

Those children who did not wheeze but had respiratory problems were most affected by household fungus. For non-wheezing children, their sensitivity to fungus is likely not an allergy but an inflammation of small airways that can lead to respiratory problems, Stark writes. 

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