The Top 100 Mold Health Symptoms and Problems, Mold Allergies, & Mold Illnesses
that Can Result from Exposure to Elevated Levels of Black Toxic Mold

by Phillip Fry, mold consultant, Certified Environmental Hygienist, Certified Mold Inspector, and Certified Mold Remediator, Jan. 30, 2012

“Exposure to elevated levels of mold while at home or at work can cause a very large variety of serious mold health symptoms and mold illnesses as the direct result of a resident or worker’s living or working in elevated levels of mold, especially black toxic mold [Stachybotrys] and other species of toxic mold such as Aspergillus and Penicillium,” notes mold expert Phillip Fry, author of both the ebooks Mold Health Guide and Mold Monsters.

”One way to have a reasonable insight as to whether or not one is living or working in serious mold infestation is to watch for the appearance of serious mold health symptoms and mold illnesses in one’s own body and the bodies of family members and co-workers,” recommends Mr. Fry, a Certified Mold Inspector and Certified Mold Remediator, and formerly with the U.S. Public Health Service and formerly a hospital administrator.

Mold consultant Phillip Fry's Mold Health Guide lists the following as the top 100 health symptoms and problems from exposure to elevated levels of black toxic mold and other toxic molds.

1. abdominal pain

2. abnormal pap smears

3. acid reflux / indigestion

4. acne

5. allergies and anaphylaxis [severe allergic reaction]

6. altered immunity

7. asthma and asthmatic signs [sudden onset asthma, increased asthma attacks,
    wheezing, shortness in breath, coughing, burning in lungs]

8. balance problems

9. bladder and kidney pain

10. bleeding lungs

11. blood pressure irregularities

12. body aches and muscle pains

13. breathing difficulties [tightness in chest, shortness of breath]

14. bruising easily

15. burning in mouth, throat and lungs similar to acid reflux

16. cancer

17. central nervous system effects

18. chills

19. choking

20. cholesterol or triglycerides irregularities

21. chronic fatigue (chronic, excessive or continued) and/or general malaise

22. chronic sinus infections

23. coated tongue

24. colds, recurring and with decreased resistance to infections

25. constipation

26. dandruff problems (chronic) that won’t go away despite use of anti-dandruff shampoos

27. dark urine

28. death in extreme cases

29. depression/anxiety/dementia

30. dermatitis and skin rashes

31. diarrhea

32. difficulty concentrating

33. difficulty in swallowing

34. dirt-like taste in mouth

35. dizziness

36. dry, hacking cough or coughing up blood [resulting to sore lungs/chest due to excessive coughing]

37. early menopause

38. eye and vision problems

39. eye irritation (burning, watery, or reddened eyes)

40. face flushing intermittently

41. facial movements inadvertently or extreme jerking

42. feeling lost or disconnected from what’s happening around you

43. feelings of hopelessness

44. fevers

45. fibromyalgia [chronic fatigue and widespread pain]

46. food allergies

47. frequent bloody noses

48. frequent infections

49. hair loss

50. headaches/migraines

51. heart attack

52. hemorrhagic or hypersensitivity pneumonitis [extrinsic allergic alveolitis, or farmers’ lung disease]

53. hypersensitivity to mold

54. indigestion [heartburn / acid reflux ]

55. infertility

56. irritability, mood swings, spleen pain or sudden personality changes

57. irritable bowel syndrome

58. itching of the nose, mouth, eyes, throat, skin or any area

59. kidney pain and failure

60. large boils on neck

61. leaky gut syndrome

62. liver pain

63. long lasting flu-like symptoms

64. memory loss or learning difficulties [brain fog, confusion, Alzheimer’s-like symptoms]

65. metallic taste in mouth

66. multiple chemical sensitivity

67. night sweats and hot flashes

68. nose or throat irritation

69. nosebleeds

70. numbness in face and limbs

71. open skin sores and lacerations

72. open sores on head

73. organic dust toxic syndrome

74. peripheral nervous system effects

75. physical weakness

76. poor appetite

77. puffy or droopy eyes

78. rashes or hives

79. redness of the sclera (white portion of your eyes)

80. respiratory distress

81. ringing in ears

82. runny nose (rhinitis), clear, thin, watery mucus from your nose may appear suddenly, or thick,
      green slime coming out of nose (from sinus cavities)

83. seizures

84. sensitivity to smells / odors

85. sinus congestion, sinus problems, chronic sinusitis and other nasal problems

86. skin rashes or irritation

87. skin redness

88. sleep disorders

89. slurred speech or verbal dysfunction (trouble in speaking)

90. sneezing fits (more than three sneezes in a row, happening often)

91. spitting up mucous

92. swollen glands

93. swollen lymph nodes

94. systemic candida infection

95. tremors (shaking)

96. unexplained fevers

97. urinary tract infection (uti)

98. vertigo or dizziness

99. vomiting (nausea)

100. women’s health problems [such as endometriosis and vaginal yeast infections].

“If one or more residents or co-workers are experiencing one or more of the above mold health symptoms or mold illnesses, the affected persons should seek immediate medical intervention from medical doctors such as a pulmonary physician (lung doctor), neurologist, and other appropriate medical specialists,” advises Mr. Fry

”At the same time the home, apartment, and/or workplace should be carefully inspected and tested for elevated levels of airborne mold spores and for hidden and visible mold growth by either a Certified Mold Inspector, or by concerned family members and co-employees utilizing do it yourself mold inspection and mold testing techniques,” further recommends Mr. Fry.

”If the attending physician has a photocopy of the mold test laboratory results from both the home and the workplace, the doctor is helped immensely in diagnosing and treating mold-related health problems,” notes Mr. Fry.

Exposure to Elevated Levels of Mold Causes Serious Health Problems

For mold inspection, mold remediation, and mold prevention for your real estate property anywhere in the world, please contact mold consultants Phillip Fry and Divine Montero by email manager@moldinspector.com or by phone 1-480-310-7970.
 

"Molds are usually not a problem indoors, unless mold spores land on a wet or damp spot and begin growing. Molds have the potential to cause health problems.  Molds produce allergens (substances that can cause allergic reactions), irritants, and in some cases, potentially toxic substances (mycotoxins). Inhaling or touching mold or mold spores may cause allergic reactions in sensitive individuals.  Allergic responses include hay fever-type symptoms, such as sneezing, runny nose, red eyes, and skin rash (dermatitis).  Allergic reactions to mold are common.  They can be immediate or delayed.  Molds can also cause asthma attacks in people with asthma who are allergic to mold.  In addition, mold exposure can irritate the eyes, skin, nose, throat, and lungs of both mold-allergic and non-allergic people.  Symptoms other than the allergic and irritant types are not commonly reported as a result of inhaling mold.  Research on mold and health effects is ongoing" advises the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

"All molds have the potential to cause health effects. Molds can produce allergens that can trigger allergic reactions or even asthma attacks in people allergic to  mold. Others are known to produce potent toxins and/or irritants. Potential health concerns are an important reason." The U.S. EPA, March, 2001. The EPA warns people that "Most people are aware that outdoor air pollution can damage their health but may not know that indoor air pollution can also have significant effects. EPA studies of human exposure to air pollutants indicate that indoor air levels of many pollutants may be 2-5 times, and occasion more than 100 times, higher than outdoor levels. These levels of indoor air pollutants are of particular concern because it is estimated that most people spend as much as 90% of their time indoors. In recent years, comparative risk studies performed by EPA and its Science Advisory Board (SAB) have consistently ranked indoor air pollution among the top five environmental risks to public health." Ninety four percent (94%) of all respiratory ailments are caused by polluted air according to the American Medical Association, which also reported that one-third of the U.S.A.'s national health bill is for causes directly attributable to indoor air pollution.

           Adult-Onset Asthma from Workplace Mold Exposure. “The present [health study] results provide new evidence of the relation between workplace exposure to indoor molds and development of asthma in adulthood. Our findings suggest that indoor mold problems constitute an important occupational health hazard,” reported the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, in Environmental Health Perspectives, May, 2002. The Finnish workplace mold study estimated that the percentage of adult-onset asthma attributable to workplace mold exposure to be 35.1%  We were able to find sufficient evidence that certain respiratory problems, including symptoms in asthmatics who are sensitive to mold, are associated with exposure to mold and damp conditions. Excessive dampness influences whether mold, as well as bacteria, dust mites and other such agents, are present and thrive indoors, the committee noted. In addition, the wetness may cause chemicals and particles to be released from building materials. A rare ailment known as hypersensitivity pneumonitis also was associated with indoor mold exposure in susceptible people," as reported in the almost 300 page report by the Institute of Medicine [division of U.S. Government's National Academy of Sciences], Tuesday, May 25, 2004. The study was financed by the U.S. Government's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

           Just a few hours of unprotected exposure to elevated levels of airborne mold spores can start mold growing inside one's body, and then possibly require medical intervention to cleanse the body of internal mold growth. Learn  the various unhealthy Mold Species.  Sample indoor mold spores with a Certified Mold Inspector. 

            “An association between working and/or residing in damp buildings and respiratory health has been reported in a number of studies…Longtime exposure to building dampness may increase the risk for hyper-reactivity of the upper air-ways. This acquired hyper-reactivity may last for years and decrease only slowly, even after the indoor climate has been properly improved.”---from the study conclusion of Stig Rudblad of the famous Karolinska Medical Institute of Stockholm Sweden, in the medical research study “Nasal mucosal reactivity after long-time exposure to building dampness,” published on October 15, 2004, by the Institute.  [The human subjects in the study were teachers and students in school buildings with known dampness problems, as compared to a control group of teachers and students in buildings with no known moisture problems.]   
          “Fungi are also being recognized more frequently as a factor in chronic sinusitis, and the importance of fungi in the pathogenesis of chronic sinusitis is a subject of increasing research interest.”---“A Practical Approach to the Patient with Sinusitis” on Medscape, November, 2005.

           Lifetime Asthma from Mold Exposure while in the Uterus or as an Infant. "Recent studies have confirmed what scientists have suspected for years: that asthma is an immune system reaction to dust, pollution and other allergens [e.g., airborne mold spores] in the environment, which trigger spasms and tightening of the airways of some people who also have a genetic predisposition. Now they're zeroing in on the genetic vulnerability. The new thinking is that asthma isn't simply a matter of having the wrong genes. Instead, at some point in early childhood, or possibly in the womb, an event takes place that turns a person into a lifetime asthmatic. Scientists think the fetus or infant is somehow exposed to a critical dose of pollutants that cause the immune system to overreact, permanently narrowing the airways and making them more sensitive to irritants. It might be possible to inoculate children against the condition before this even occurs, preventing asthma entirely."---from "Waiting to Inhale," NEWSWEEK, March 14, 2005.

Mold as a Cause of Cancer

“Molds can cause illnesses in situations other than humid indoor environments. We have documented that molds can cause infections in susceptible people, particularly in hospital settings where 9% of hospital-acquired (nosocomial) infections are caused by fungi. Respiratory infections due to inhalation of the fungus Aspergillus have been documented mostly in immunocompromised individuals. Molds also have been associated with some cancers. Two mold-produced toxins (aflatoxins and ochratoxin A) have been classified by the National Toxicology Program as human carcinogens (http://ntpserver.niehs.nih.gov/). Chronic ingestion of these toxins from eating contaminated foods has been associated with liver and kidney tumors in animals and people.”  Statement of Stephen C. Redd, M.D., Chief, Air Pollution and Respiratory Health Branch, National Center for Environmental Health Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services before the U.S. House of Representatives Financial Services Subcommittee on July 18, 2002.