Mold in Your Home: Health Risks to Know

John P. Lapotaire, CIEC

The growth of any type of mold in a home is never acceptable. Your safest and most prudent course of action is to treat all molds with caution and to remove them from your home as soon as possible.

In the spring, some people experience no health effects from the increased amount of pollen in the air, while other people have serious allergic reactions. The same is true with mold spores, both inside and outside a home. Some people experience little or no reaction from high levels of exposure to mold spores. Other people exposed to low levels can have allergic responses, including asthma, stuffy or runny noses, eye irritation, fever, wheezing, inflammation in the lungs, and skin rashes.

These same symptoms can be caused by a variety of allergens. If you experience the symptoms, you should not automatically assume that your home has a mold problem.

You may want to have your indoor environment assessed by a CIEC Council Certified Indoor Environmental Consultant to help identify any elevations of allergens in your home and identify the cause and origin so you can take the appropriate corrective action. If you need to have your home inspected for mold make sure your mold inspector is a Florida State Licensed Mold Assessor. To be licensed as a Mold Assessor the State of Florida ensures that your mold assessor is properly, insured, and trained.

Healthy individuals usually are not vulnerable to health problems from airborne mold exposure. If you have concerns about possible health and safety issues regarding mold, immediately contact a medical professional and/or your local government health authority for guidance.

Remember before hiring an IAQ or mold assessor, check with the State of Florida to ensure that your IAQ mold assessor is licensed, insured, and trained.