Markus Skupeika asked:
Everybody has a first time experience with molds and mildews. If you haven’t met them yet, you are lucky. Unfortunately, they are spreading at such an alarming rate that it is really difficult to avoid exposure to molds.
Outdoor, you can still avoid exposure by simply leaving the place where you sense the presence of molds and mildews. When they grow inside your home, you have simply no option but to live with these harmful creatures under the same roof!
This is not at all desired. The mold species Stachybotrys chartarum is extremely dangerous for human health. You may wonder what kind of mold is this! Haven’t you heard of black mold? Stachybotrys chartarum is the scientific name of black mold. It is a greenish black fungal growth generally found outdoors. In can also grow on damp and water damaged walls, floors, furniture and organic products.
They obtain nutrition from dead organic materials by decomposing them into simpler substances. They reproduce through spore formation. Black mold spores are released in air and taken by air current mainly.
Mold spores are everywhere. Airborne mold spores come in with air mainly. They often get stuck on human body, clothes and even on pets in outdoor. And easily find their way into your basement, kitchen, bathroom, garden or crawl places. These mold spores float in the air and enter into your body when you breathe in.
But that happens to all mold species, how black mold is different and why are they called toxic?
Why black molds are toxic?
Toxic black molds, Stachybotrys or black mold, whatever you call them, produce mycotoxins during metabolism. Mycotoxins are found on the substance they grow on, in airborne hyphal parts and in mold spores. Mycotoxins make black molds more dangerous for human beings. When they grow inside homes or business premises, the risk of exposure to black molds increase many times. One needs to use black mold cleaner to kill toxic molds.
Different species of molds produce mycotoxins of varied severity. The amount produced and the level of toxicity also may depend on the present conditions of life. When all the conditions – moisture, food source, air and temperature, are right, higher amount of mycotoxins are produced which make the situation worse.
Different species of fungus produce different types of toxins; needless to mention that not all the toxins affect human system in the same way. Mold sampling is often done to find out the type of mold contamination. Once you know the species of molds, you can figure out what type of health concerns does it associate with.
Mycotoxins – black mold health effects:
* Weaker immune system
* Allergy, irritation of eyes, throat and skin
* Sickness, diarrhea and even death
Some forms of mycotoxins have higher impact on pets than on humans. Indoor toxic black mold growth can be lethal. Black molds should always be removed with black mold killer.
What kills mold?
Though people have been using bleaches to kill mold, bleach has certain limitations. It cannot reach to the toughest corner of your room or some narrow cracks on the wall where molds have started nesting.
Bleach may clean the place temporarily but it fails to prevent future contamination. Moreover, bleach is not good for human health, hence it can add to the problems.
Natural black mold killer are good from all perspectives. Being natural they are free from side effects; hence no health threats are associated with them. Top of all, they prevent future mold growth efficiently.
Daryl Watters asked:
Toxic black mold or stachybotrys is found by certified mold inspectors about 6% of the time in indoor air samples and about 1% of the time in outdoor samples.
According to literature and according to this inspectors experience it grows almost exclusively on very wet cellouse containing materials including paper, carpet backings, ceiling tile, and especially on drywall.
It is the most feared of all molds, due to the numerous news reports, newspaper articles, and magazine articles attributing possible brain damage, infant deaths, expensive property damage and other horrible consequences surrounding its growth in residential settings.
Many molds produce mycotoxins (toxic chemicals that molds use in a type of microbial warfare). Living things that do not possess claws, fangs, or a hard shell to use in self defense or fast legs to run away from predators, will typically revert to the use of camouflage or the production of poisons. This is very common in nature.
In reality, toxic molds like Stachybotrys also known as toxic black mold and others may have to be either consumed in mold contaminated foods, or physically handled so that excessive physical contact is made between human skin and the mold in order for toxic reactions to develop. At this time most scientists do not believe that breathing in toxic mold spores can have toxic effects on humans when inhaled at the levels typically encountered in homes and offices.
Public opinion may not be in support of the above statement and in the future we may find that the above statement is not true and perhaps one day we will find that toxic molds cause toxic reactions via inhalation but currently scientific evidence does not support the view that toxic molds can poison you via inhalation at levels found in indoor environments. To support this statement please review the following abstract from the International Journal of Toxicology Volume 23, Number 1 / January-February 2004 pages 3 to 10.
“Risk from Inhaled Mycotoxins in Indoor Office and Residential Environments
Bruce J. Kelman A1, Coreen A. Robbins A1, Lonie J. Swenson A1, Bryan D. Hardin A1 A1 GlobalTox, Inc., Redmond, Washington, USA
Abstract:
Mycotoxins are known to produce veterinary and human diseases when consumed with contaminated foods. Mycotoxins have also been proposed to cause adverse human health effects after inhalation exposure to mold in indoor residential, school, and office environments. Epidemiological evidence has been inadequate to establish a causal relationship between indoor mold and nonallergic, toxigenic health effects. In this article, the authors model a maximum possible dose of mycotoxins that could be inhaled in 24 h of continuous exposure to a high concentration of mold spores containing the maximum reported concentration of aflatoxins B1 and B2, satratoxins G and H, fumitremorgens B and C, verruculogen, and trichoverrols A and B. These calculated doses are compared to effects data for the same mycotoxins. None of the maximum doses modeled were sufficiently high to cause any adverse effect. The model illustrates the inefficiency of delivery of mycotoxins via inhalation of mold spores, and suggests that the lack of association between mold exposure and mycotoxicoses in indoor environments is due to a requirement for extremely high airborne spore levels and extended periods of exposure to elicit a response. This model is further evidence that human mycotoxicoses are implausible following inhalation exposure to mycotoxins in mold-contaminated home, school, or office environments.”
Regardless of if toxic mold can poison you with mycotoxins via inhalation, it is a fact observed by this inspector many times that mold can make some people very sick. Asthma attacks, allergies, and sinus infections from mold appear to be very common. Such conditions in turn can cause people to loose sleep, loose energy and concentration, miss work, and in general feel as if they were being poisoned by mycotoxins.
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