Mould is health, not political issue

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Mould is health, not political issue

Editorial - Wednesday, April 18, 2007 @ 16:00

Sarnia Observer - Sarnia,ON,Canada

http://www.theobserver.ca/webapp/sitepages/content.asp?

contentid=491961 & catname=Editorial & classif=

Sir: In the April 11, 2007, edition of The Observer, Gayle Stucke,

director of education for the Lambton Kent District School Board,

was quoted as saying, " Mould doesn't make you sick. "

Has Ms. Stucke done her homework? It certainly doesn't appear so.

I think perhaps she could benefit from some " mould education. "

Stachybotrys is also known as " black mould. " In many cases, you

don't see it. It hides behind walls, below floor tiles, above

ceiling tiles, around pipes and in areas that are exposed to

excessive humidity and moisture. Black mould grows quickly after

only a few days' exposure to moisture.

Stachybotrys is not something that will simply go away if you ignore

it. Continued exposure to black mould results in many adverse

physical symptoms, including headaches, respiratory irritation, flu-

like symptoms and even difficulty breathing. These symptoms are made

worse if the person is also allergic to mould.

For years, farmers complained of respiratory difficulties. Studies

concluded that these symptoms were caused by excessive and continued

exposure to the mould that grows in hay. (FYI: black mould also

grows in hay.)

" Farmer's lung " is just one of the illnesses caused by exposure to

mould. Another illness is " sick building syndrome. " SBS describes

situations where building occupants experience health problems that

appear to be linked to the time spent in the building, but no one

specific illness can be readily identified. The symptoms are real,

they aren't figments of the patients' imaginations.

Symptoms of SBS may include rhinitis, nasal congestion, nose bleeds,

pharyngitis, cough, wheezing, worsening of asthma, shortness of

breath, conjunctival irritation (pink eye), headaches, dizziness,

lethargy, fatigue, malaise, nausea, vomiting, cognitive impairment,

personality change, rashes, fever, chills, tachycardia (rapid

heartbeat), retinal hemorrhage, myalgia and hearing loss. Finally,

excessive exposure to black mould has also been linked to pediatric

pulmonary hemorrhaging.

These symptoms are very real and the people who are experiencing any

or all of these after being exposed to black mould in our schools

are sick. They aren't, as Ms. Stucke said, " looking for problems. "

This isn't a political issue, it's a health issue, and I ask Ms.

Stucke to treat it as such. Surely she wants her staff and students

to be healthy.

Class dismissed.

Sarnia