Mold can have dire health consequences

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Mold can have dire health consequences

http://www.delmarvanow.com/article/20090327/OPINION01/903270339/-1/newsfront2

By Dr. Ritchie C. Shoemaker . March 27, 2009

RE: " Mold in home compels family to lobby for change, " Mar. 22

Articles like this one are dangerous; some affected people might not seek

proper medical care, believing instead that incorrect statements made in The

Daily Times regarding health effects acquired following exposure to

water-damaged buildings.

There is a robust medical literature on what sickens people living in WDB;

mold is just one part of the list of microbes and chemicals that cause

inflammation and human disease. More than 100 published papers reporting

illness in more than 50,000 people from 14 countries are found in standard

reference data bases. Science shows us the chemical stew found in WDB

creates a distinctive series of metabolic disturbances in innate immunity, a

part of immune response completely different from allergy.

Innate immune illnesses don't self-heal; hence, the danger of not informing

the public of health risks.

Compounds found inside WDB are not too heavy to be airborne. More than 100

papers note the importance of inhalation of airborne illness-causers,

including toxins, proteinases, beta-glucans, hemolysins and more. Building

indices of contamination, like the EPA relative mold index help sort " safe "

buildings from those that sicken people.

U.S. government agencies -- including the Environmental Protection Agency,

National Institute of Environmental Health Services, Centers for Disease

Control, Health and Human Services and Housing and Urban Development --

speak with one voice regarding health effects from exposure to WDB, a point

emphasized by the recent GAO report on WDB and health.

If you have evidence of mold growth, clean it up; if you are ill, get out.

The Ministry of Health of Canada goes one step further: Don't bother

measuring levels, just clean up after getting out. The World Health

Organization points to the multi-dimensional aspects of sources of

inflammation residing in WDB, not found elsewhere.

Our group published a case definition of mold illness in adults in 2003. Our

pediatric case definition was presented on March 14 to the International

Chronic Fatigue Association, an organization sponsored in part by the CDC.

Our group has published three academic papers and made numerous invited

presentations to mold-literate scientific audiences. To date, our roster of

mold patients seen in Pocomoke City exceeds 5,300 people.

Brown doesn't have to wait years for answers; the science is already here.

Dr. Ritchie C. Shoemaker operates the Center for Research on Biotoxin

Associated Illnesses in Pocomoke City.