All the dampness an invitation to mold

[Guest guest]

All the dampness an invitation to mold

Seattle Times - WA*

By Kyung M. Song

Seattle Times health reporter

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004057933_stormmold0

7m.html

If you're still mopping up the mess from the rainstorm, chances are

you've got a problem with mold.

Health officials say it's a virtual certainty: Any flooded home or

building that wasn't cleaned and completely dried within a day or

two is a haven for the fungal spores. And unless you get rid of them

quickly, molds can potentially mean trouble to your health and home.

People who have asthma, allergies or sensitivity to mold are the

most likely to suffer effects such as wheezing, itchy eyes, rashes

and other discomfort. But people who are already sick, or have

weakened immune systems in general, can catch fungal infections that

could lead to more serious conditions such as pneumonia.

" If you've got mold indoors, that needs to be dealt with, " said

, an investigator for Public Health — Seattle & King

County.

For most healthy people, temporary exposure to molds will pose

little health hazard, said. No medical studies have

definitively linked mold exposures to long-term health consequences,

he said.

Mold is generally not poisonous. While some molds do produce toxins,

said, a person would have to ingest a large amount of it at

the right time to fall ill.

The " toxic black mold " often heard about after major disasters is a

different type that requires months of stagnant water to spread.

That probably won't be an issue here, said.

Indoor mold, whether it's green, brown, orange or any other shade,

needs to be deprived of moisture to stop growing, said White,

a technical adviser on mold for the state Department of Health.

That means anything that could feed and harbor mold growth —

including damp paper, wood, fabric, upholstery and carpets — should

be thrown out or replaced. All other surfaces should be thoroughly

cleaned with regular detergent or diluted bleach solution. (But

never mix cleaning products, because the wrong combinations can

create toxic fumes.)

And it's essential to eliminate all traces of moisture,

warns. Otherwise, the mold will keep growing, eventually " eating

away at the house and composting it. "

Kyung Song: 206-464-2423 or ksong@...

[Guest guest]

I just left a message for this reporter on what a disservice he did for the

people of Washington. I told him he should do more research and run another

article to better inform his readers. I offered to send him the articles that

were just released from there local university's that confirm the ill health

affects it does to the human body. Can you believe laundry soap and bleach!!!

tigerpaw2c <tigerpaw2c@...> wrote: All the

dampness an invitation to mold

Seattle Times - WA*

By Kyung M. Song

Seattle Times health reporter

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004057933_stormmold0

7m.html

If you're still mopping up the mess from the rainstorm, chances are

you've got a problem with mold.

Health officials say it's a virtual certainty: Any flooded home or

building that wasn't cleaned and completely dried within a day or

two is a haven for the fungal spores. And unless you get rid of them

quickly, molds can potentially mean trouble to your health and home.

People who have asthma, allergies or sensitivity to mold are the

most likely to suffer effects such as wheezing, itchy eyes, rashes

and other discomfort. But people who are already sick, or have

weakened immune systems in general, can catch fungal infections that

could lead to more serious conditions such as pneumonia.

" If you've got mold indoors, that needs to be dealt with, " said

, an investigator for Public Health — Seattle & King

County.

For most healthy people, temporary exposure to molds will pose

little health hazard, said. No medical studies have

definitively linked mold exposures to long-term health consequences,

he said.

Mold is generally not poisonous. While some molds do produce toxins,

said, a person would have to ingest a large amount of it at

the right time to fall ill.

The " toxic black mold " often heard about after major disasters is a

different type that requires months of stagnant water to spread.

That probably won't be an issue here, said.

Indoor mold, whether it's green, brown, orange or any other shade,

needs to be deprived of moisture to stop growing, said White,

a technical adviser on mold for the state Department of Health.

That means anything that could feed and harbor mold growth —

including damp paper, wood, fabric, upholstery and carpets — should

be thrown out or replaced. All other surfaces should be thoroughly

cleaned with regular detergent or diluted bleach solution. (But

never mix cleaning products, because the wrong combinations can

create toxic fumes.)

And it's essential to eliminate all traces of moisture,

warns. Otherwise, the mold will keep growing, eventually " eating

away at the house and composting it. "

Kyung Song: 206-464-2423 or ksong@...

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