Re: Fw : Study: A Moldy Home May Make You Sad | Newsweek To Y...

[Guest guest]

if they had depressive symptoms such as decreased appetite, low self-esteem

and sleep disturbances.

Hello??? these are not symptoms of " depression " after excessive exposure to

microbial contaminants. They are symptoms indicative of poisoning after

being exposed to known poisonous substances.

What is depressing is article like this in publications such as Newsweek,

donwplaying the severity of the effects on these known contaminants on the

immune system.

Articles such as this and the resultant mistreatment of the sick as having

psychological problems, is what is the primary cause of depression among those

who are physically ill, and some dumbass doesn't study or understand this

and therefore concludes it is psychological....then he gets some idiot to write

it as fact in Newsweek. Hello? The cause of weight loss and sleep

disturbances is physicial. The lack of self esteem comes from screaming for

help

when no one will listen.

Sharon Kramer

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[Guest guest]

This Newsweek article really bugs me. These guys admit they were skeptics

going in, and intended to prove that people who claim they are ill from moldy

homes are just malingerers. Then, when their statistics did not back up what

they were finding, that there was indeed a direct correlation between

neuropsychological ie " depression " and living in moldy homes, they went with

their

bias anyway to conclude that people are psychologically depressed because the

can't control that their is mold in their home...therefore, their real

problem is lack of self esteem. I don't think Ed McMahan, Bullock,

Brockavich, Aniston, Ted Nugent and a few others have any esteem

problems, yet they all claim mold in their homes made them sick.

Its Mycotic, NOT Psychotic.

The only psychological problems that I can see from this Newsweek article

are those of people who profess to be professional researchers concluding their

foregone biased conclusion regardless of the fact that their own study

refutes their conclusion of mere psychological illness caused by " lack of self

esteem " .

Sharon K

In a message dated 7/6/2008 5:26:34 P.M. Pacific Daylight Time,

quackadillian@... writes:

Thank you!

Its good that this new paper came out and that Newsweek is covering this..

This is NOT the only study that says this. There have been quite a few.

Quite a bit of work has been done on ochratoxin in particular but there are

similar studies about trichothecenes.. Those are the two mycotoxins Ive seen

the most stuff on.. This ties in to the " neurogenic model " of depression.

If new connections can't grow, neurogenesis stops.. Then the brain cannot

repair itself or integrate learned or emotional information, also people can't

adapt to change..or learn..

One of the many things that happens is depression.. Its a significant one

but its one of many things..

The body of research on mold effecting neurotransmitters and brain activity

is pretty large.. actually..

"

_http://www.newsweek.com/id/38951_ (http://www.newsweek.com/id/38951)

Mold and Moods

A new study says that mold isn't just a costly and unsightly blight on

homes, it may also be linked to higher rates of depression.

Springen

Newsweek Web Exclusive

Updated: 1:34 PM ET Aug 30, 2007

No one likes mold. Yet the unsightly blight is present in an estimated 40

percent of American homes. And those rates may be higher in flood-ravaged areas

like the Gulf Coast. The tiny fungi can irritate the upper-respiratory

tract, causing coughing, wheezing and asthma symptoms in the 5 percent of the

population with allergic antibodies to them.

But the effects of mold may be even more diverse than previously thought. A

new study out this week in the American Journal of Public Health suggests that

damp, moldy homes are associated with an increased incidence of depression.

Why? " Some molds are toxins, and exposure to these toxins may hypoactivate

parts of the brain that deal with emotions, " says lead author Edmond Shenassa,

assistant professor of epidemiology at Brown Medical School in Providence,

R.I.

Shenassa and his colleagues looked at World Health Organization data from

5,882 adults living in eight cities in Europe, including Budapest, Geneva and

Bonn, Germany. WHO interviewers asked residents if they had depressive

symptoms such as decreased appetite, low self-esteem and sleep disturbances.

Researchers found that those that said yes were more likely to live in damp,

moldy

homes. " [The study] suggests that healthy homes can lead to healthier lives.

The take-home message is that housing conditions can influence health, " says

Shenassa. While the study did not provide a definitive reason for the link,

study authors said that two factors are likely to be at play. One is the

perceived lack of control over one's environment that mold can create and the

other

is mold-related health problems such as wheezing, fatigue and colds. (The

team is conducting follow-up research to see whether mold directly causes

depression.)

Not all the experts agree that there is any connection between mold and

depression—despite this new research. Critics wish the study hadn't relied on

self reports. " Having professionals do the inspection and rate homes for

dampness or moldiness is much better than having people self report, " says Pat

Breysse, director of the division of environmental health engineering at the

s

Hopkins School of Public Health. Often people " point fingers at mold, " but

" the biological link between mold and a neurotoxic effect that might lead to

depression is very tenuous, in my opinion, " says Breysse.

But whether mold is linked to depression or not, many health professionals

agree that homeowners need to fix their houses. The presence of mold doesn't

just mean trouble for allergy sufferers, it also means a home is more likely

to be infested with cockroaches, and it usually brings down property values.

So don't wait for an inspector, advises Breysse. " If you've got a leaky pipe

and a big stain in the ceiling, you don't need to hire someone to say

there's a big problem, " he says. " It's an indication that the plumbing is

leaking,

the roof is leaking and the upkeep of the house is bad. Bad housing is not

healthy for lots of reasons. That should be the message, not that mold causes

depression. "

To prevent the spread of the icky fungi, Shenassa recommends that you keep

the bathroom and the kitchen as dry as possible and have space where one can

get behind appliances to wipe out the water. He also suggests insulating

around pipes, windows and maintaining good ventilation. After all, a dry home

is

likely to be a healthier home, even if it's not necessarily happier.

URL: _http://www.newsweek.com/id/38951_ (http://www.newsweek.com/id/38951)

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