Mold issues continue to spread

[Guest guest]

Mold issues continue to spread

Jan 09, 2008

By Indianapolis_Home_Inspector*

http://www.wannanetwork.com/blog/view/?ID=5485

I came across an interesting article concerning Mold lately, and I

thought I would share it with everyone. Mold is becoming more and

more prevelant in todays real estate transactions. As jury's

continue to award damages to plaintifs across the country, it is

only a matter of time until Mold really hits the forefront. I think

it is in all of our best interests to become familiar with Mold,

it's causes and effects as well as the inspection and remediation of

it.

Homes have been razed and schools emptied in recent years, as

Indiana residents and families nationwide increasingly attribute ill

health and property damage to the phenomenon of mold.

Although mold in itself is nothing new, its contamination has become

a financial and legal nightmare for property owners and insurance

agents.

More than 10,000 mold-related lawsuits are pending across the

country, and two jury awards given last year topped $30 million,

according to the Indiana Chamber of Commerce.

Whether the result of media hype and zealous trial lawyers, or a

legitimate increasing awareness of a long-overlooked health risk,

fear of mold contamination has seeped into the nation's

consciousness.

A handful of states, including Indiana, has proposed legislation to

research mold and look at how to regulate it. The federal government

also is examining the problem: the Centers for Disease Control

recently commissioned the Institute of Medicine to study the health

effects of mold exposure.

And the Indiana Chamber will sponsor its third symposium on mold in

January, one of a handful of presentations sprouting across the

state. The forums are for concerned homeowners and parents, health

professionals and the businesses most likely to be affected by the

costs of cleaning mold contamination.

" There has been a lot of hysteria about mold, " said Jack Leonard,

president of the Environmental Management Institute in Indianapolis,

a nonprofit training corporation affiliated with Indiana University.

Health effects

Internet sites are filled with horror stories of " toxic mold " and

inspectors willing to come in -- albeit for a hefty fee -- to clean

the fungi.

Leonard dismissed much of the media attention and the dire health

warnings about mold, however.

" None of the lawsuits have been won on basis of its proven health

effects, " he said. " Proving that you got sick from a specific toxin

from a specific mold is beyond where the science on mold is today. "

There are more than 100,000 species of mold -- a fungus that thrives

in moisture and is not typically hazardous to healthy people --

according to the Indiana State Department of Health.

" Mold is everywhere; it is the most common life form in the world, "

said Dr. Baker, an assistant professor and allergy

specialist at Indiana University School of Medicine.

Although it is well-documented that inhaling mold spores can worsen

and cause both allergy and asthma symptoms, there is no medical

proof that exposure to it results in more serious health problems,

Baker said.

" All of the claims now on the Internet about mold, the memory loss,

hemorrhaging, numbness -- there is just no cause and effect where

those claims can be proven, " he said. " Most of the claims are just

not reliable complaints that we can attribute to mold exposure. "

Helene Uhlman, administrator of the Hammond Health Department, said

concerns about the health effects are not overblown.

" We are looking at a lot more children with asthma and allergies and

at the same time learning a lot more about mold, " she said. " We

really didn't pay as much attention as we should have before. Now

that we are finding out more and more, we know we underestimated the

types and varieties of mold. "

Although most experts cringe at the term " toxic mold, " some molds do

produce toxins.

A small group of molds -- including the notorious " black mold "

called stachybotrys -- emit chemicals called mycotoxins. It is those

chemicals that may be hazardous if they become airborne in large

quantities.

However, all mold that is dark green or black is not the toxin-

producing black mold.

For instance, the dark mold commonly found between bathroom tiles is

not black mold, according to Ruyack, program manager for the

state health department's indoor and radiologic health division.

" There are toxic molds, but I wouldn't be concerned if I had a spot

on the wall, " he said. " But if I walked into my basement, and the

entire wall was covered, I'd have serious problems.

" That would be a different story. (Mold problems) depend on levels

and sensitivities, " Ruyack said.

Lack of standards

That degree of uncertainty is partly why mold has become such a

vexing problem.

Because there are so many different types of mold and people react

so differently to them, there is not a certain level of

contamination at which mold is deemed hazardous.

" Unlike lead or asbestos, there is no number to pinpoint as a

marker, meaning that if your (property) is below this number you're

safe, " Leonard said. " There is no science that would support those

kinds of guidelines. "

And also unlike lead and asbestos, mold is not regulated by the

state or federal government. But Leonard said the recent response to

mold is reminiscent of the asbestos scare in the 1980s.

" There was initial panic and then people learned how to contain and

manage it. I think mold will evolve in the same direction, but it's

more of a problem, " he said. " Mold is more complex to deal with than

asbestos was, so it will take longer to get industry standards up

and running. "

In the meantime, disgruntled and sick homeowners may be left with

mold damage to repair and lawsuits to be filed.

Mike Chamberlain,MICP

MC2 Home Inspections

[Guest guest]

This article was a good example of the various logical fallacies that

are repeated about mold.. laid out one by one..

I see these mantras as attempts to confuse the issues and avoid facing

the problem honestly...