A 1999 Mayo Clinic
Study cites molds as the cause of most of the chronic sinus
infections that inflict 37 million Americans each year.
Recent studies also link molds to the soaring asthma rate.
Molds Have been an
under recognized health problem, but that is changing.
Health-care professionals now know that molds can cause
allergies, trigger asthma attacks and increase
susceptibility to colds and flu. Anyone with a genetic
predisposition can become allergic if exposed repeatedly to
high enough levels. Last year Dr. David Sherris at the Mayo
Clinic performed a study of 210 patients with chronic sinus
infections and found that most had allergic fungal
sinusitis. The prevailing medical opinion has been that mold
accounted for 6 to 7 percent of all chronic sinusitis. The
Mayo Clinic study found that it was 93 percent - the exact
reverse. Newsweek, 12/4/00
There are over 100,000
know living species of fungus, some of which are beneficial
to mankind. Mycologists estimate that there may be as many
as 200,000 more unidentified species of fungus. Yeasts,
mold, mildews, rusts, and mushrooms are types of fungus.
Mold nor spores cause
illness, other than allergy and /or infections. It is the
mycotoxins released when the molds' food source (moisture)
is severed. To help comprehend how small mycotoxins are, one
common housefly and could carry about 7.35 billion attached
to its external body hairs. Consequently, IF 50,000
constitute a theoretically lethal dose, a housefly could
carry a lethal dose for over 100,000 individuals.
When the stachybotrys
mold dries, the mycotoxin production increases up to 40,000
times.
Conclusions and
Recommendations
Prudent public health
practice then indicates removal from exposure through clean
up or remediation, and public education about the potential
for harm. Not all species within these genera are toxigenic,
but it is prudent to assume that when these molds are found
in excess indoors that they are treated as though they are
toxin producing.
Tips on Mold
Some mold species are
toxic. If mold is present, as a safety precaution, you
should always contact a professional.
