How To Identify Black Mold Health Effects

There’s a lot of talk these days about black mold health effects and it’s easy to see why people are jumping to all sorts of conclusions and blaming every sniffle and sneeze on black mold.  While it’s true that black mold can have some pretty serious health effects, a simple sneeze once or twice a week doesn’t necessarily mean your house is being overtaken by The Blob.  Here are some of the black mold health effects you can watch for:

Black Mold Health Effects – Allergies

Most people are allergic to mold.  But spotting a small patch doesn’t mean your health is immediately at risk.  Generally, the symptoms include coughing, scratching, sneezing, watery eyes, runny nose and a sore throat.  If you’ve found a patch of mold you should get rid of it.  If there’s no mold in sight then don’t panic.  You’re probably just reacting to pollen or dust.

Infections – Infections caused by exposure to black mold are more common in people with weakened immune systems – young children and babies, seniors, and people who are taking drugs for chemotherapy.  When taking these drugs you already have a weaker immune system and your body can’t properly fight off infection.  Again, if you see black mold in your home you should get rid of it and fix the problem.  If you don’t see it, don’t panic.  If your immune system is weakened you could be reacting to dust, pollen, or viruses.  It’s still important to seek medical treatment, but you don’t necessarily have to destroy your home in search of the hidden black mold.

More serious – If members of your family are suddenly having trouble concentrating or they’re experiencing severe headaches, dizziness and nausea, then it’s reasonable to assume you have a massive problem with black mold somewhere in your home.  And it’s probably gone undetected for quite some time.  As you can see, these symptoms can be very severe.

Identifying black mold health effects is almost as tricky as finding the black mold that’s hiding in your home.  And with all the over-blown negative publicity it’s easy to jump to conclusions every time some in your household has the sniffles.

The truth is, you may have black mold growing somewhere in your home and never be able to find it.  While it typically prefers cool, damp places in your house, it also likes to grow inside your walls.  Which would mean then, if you really want to check out your whole house you’re going to have to tear down a lot of walls!

So what should you do?  Well, first, give your house a thorough investigation – from top to bottom.  Either wash away or cut away every piece of mold you see.  And next, don’t panic.  It could be that your family members have just contracted a cold or flue or maybe there’s a bug going around.  However, if symptoms persist, or worsen, then consult your physician first to determine the cause.