The Health Effects of Mold
Everyone is exposed to some amount of mold every day. Not everyone is mold sensitive. However, if there are active mold spores in the home, workplace or outdoors. Over time these conditions can cause or worsen health effects.
Health Symptoms of Mold Exposure
According to a 2004 Institutes of Medicine Report, Damp Indoor Spaces and Health, the only health outcomes with sufficient evidence of an association with mold include upper respiratory (nose and throat) symptoms, cough, wheeze, and asthma symptoms among sensitized individuals.
Molds produce allergens, irritants, and sometimes toxins that may cause adverse health reactions. The types and severity of symptoms depend on the types of mold present, extent of the mold exposure and an individual’s existing allergies to mold.
What should I do if someone in my household is sensitive to mold?
Consult a health care provider. They can tell you if the symptoms may be mold allergy-related.
Keep anyone who is known to be sensitive to mold away from the exposure. You may need to find temporary living arrangements for them if the mold problem is large enough.
For more details go to the EPA Mold Website
Controlling Mold: A Guide for Tenants and Landlords
Working Together to Address Mold Issues
- What is mold and where is it found?
- Why does mold grow in my house
- Can mold affect my health?
- Renters: “What are signs of mold I should look for?”
- For Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Renters/Landlords
- Landlords: What if I am a responsible landlord and I continue receiving complaints from the tenant?
- Download Controlling Mold: A Guide for Tenants and Landlords
What is mold and where is it found?
Molds are fungi that occur in the natural environment and their role in nature is to cause the decay of dead plant and animal matter. Molds create tiny spores to reproduce, just like some plants produce seeds. These microscopic spores travel through the air and when they land on a damp spot they may begin to grow and feed on organic matter to survive. Avoiding mold spores indoors is impossible because they are always in the air and get indoors through open doorways, windows, vents, and heating and air conditioning systems. Mold spores can also attach themselves to clothing, shoes, bags, and pets and be carried indoors. Although mold growth outdoors is a good and necessary process, mold growth indoors is a potential for major problems and should be avoided. Molds will grow wherever they have enough moisture, nutrients and the appropriate temperatures. There are many kinds of molds and people are in contact with mold spores every day, usually by touching them or breathing them in.
Why does mold grow in my house?
When mold begins to grow indoors, it generally means that the spores have located enough moisture, nutrients, and the appropriate temperatures to develop into mold growth. The musty, earthy smells indoors generally are indicative of mold present.
Mold needs two things to grow:
- Wet or damp conditions;
- A nutrition source, such as leaves, food, wood, wallboard, insulation, ceiling tiles, paper products (such as stacks of newspapers or magazines) or other organic-based material such as dust, paints, carpet, fabric and upholstery.
The more common areas for excess moisture sources in the home are:
- Flooding, leaks in the roof, windows, and plumbing;
- Steam in the kitchen and bathrooms with poor or no exhaust ventilation,
- Moisture from humidifiers
- Wet clothes drying indoors or clothes dryers exhausting indoors.
Therefore, tenants and landlords should work together to quickly identify and correct high moisture conditions before mold grows and health problems develop.
Can mold affect my health?
Exposure to mold inside a home is not healthy for anyone. Certain individuals, such as infants and young children, elderly, people with weakened immune systems (such as people with HIV infection, cancer chemotherapy patients and so on) and those with respiratory conditions such as asthma, allergies or chemical sensitivities are more likely be affected by mold exposure
Renters: “What are signs of mold I should look for?”
- Look for evidence of moisture: condensation on windows or walls is an important indication of a moisture problem
- When you are looking at places to rent, look for any moisture/mold problems before moving in or signing the lease. Get informed about the signs of moisture or mold.
- Mold can be many different colors
- It may look furry, slimy, or powdery.
- Mold has a musty, stale, or earthy odor and it usually grows in damp places, such as bathrooms and basements.
- Mold can grown on paper, fabric, or wallpaper glue, sheet rock, wood, soap scum, leather, and many other surfaces.
- Warping floors or discoloration of walls and ceiling can be indications of moisture problems.
- Indoor combustion problems can also lead to excess moisture. Have fuel-burning appliances routinely inspected by your local utility or a professional heating contractor.
- KEEP IN MIND: if there is a musty, stale, or earthy odor, it’s probably mold.
“Which areas in the home are commonly affected by mold?”
- Look in kitchen for leaks in pipes or discoloration of walls—especially under sinks; loose and warped tile, open cabinet doors. Look at walls under ceiling inside cabinets; under throw rugs, behind and under the refrigerator.
- Look in bathroom area for leaks in pipes, discoloration of walls near sink, tub and toilet, and warped tiles.
- Windows in all rooms and doors to the outside: look for chipping of paint or plaster or discoloration of walls or rotting wood frames.
- Ceilings in all rooms—discoloration in paint or warping areas.
If after moving in you find mold in the house the first step is to clean up the mold and second is to find and fix the water leak. Mold will not grow if moisture is not present.
Here are recommended steps about how to work with your landlord in removing mold in the home you rent:
- Notify the landlord or property manager immediately when you find mold. Submit a work order in writing to request the removal of the mold and to remedy leaks. Keep a copy of this letter and send the original by certified mail with return receipt requested.
- As part of the tenant record, it is a good idea to take pictures of the mold and/or mold damage. You may also want to take pictures of any problem area(s) where you know moisture collects on a regular basis. For example, take pictures if there is a roof leak after every rainstorm or a window doesn’t quite shut and rain comes through. This will provide evidence if you have to go to court as a result of the landlord’s failure to make repairs. Also show the problems to witnesses.
- Document all actions about your notification to the landlord. Include such dates, times, what is said, and what is agreed upon.
- Follow up with the property manager after the letter has been received. Request documentation of plans to address the problem.
- Document all actions taken by the landlord such as dates, times, and what was corrected.
- If you or a family member are having respiratory or other health problems you believe are related to mold see a health care professional, and get copies of the medical evaluation results.
- If medical tests are conducted, ask for copies of any medical evaluations and lab results. These may be useful to you later.
- Send a certified letter to your landlord explaining the problem along with copies of the photos and the medical information.
For Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Renters/Landlords:
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It is important that you follow protocol set forth by HUD policies.
- If difficult situations continue and the problem isn’t being resolved, please work with the HUD office with which you are affiliated. If you don’t know which office to contact, call the main HUD office in Albuquerque at 505 346-6463. For HUD guidance about mold, please visit: http://www.hud.gov/offices/lead/healthyhomes/mold.cfm
Landlords: What if I am a responsible landlord and I continue receiving complaints from the tenant?
- You and your tenant may need to do a ‘walk through’ of the house together to find out the source of the problem.
- As a landlord you also have a right to remind the tenant of their responsibility to keep the premises clean and dry, as agreed to in the lease.
Where can I go for more advice about Tenant/Landlord issues?
An excellent reference is NM Legal Aid’s Renter’s Guide: http://www.lawhelp.org/Program/3501/index.cfm?pagename=homepage
Phone list of local code enforcement offices
www.rld.state.nm.us/cid/PDFs/City%20and%20County%20Building%20Departments.pdf
For Housing and Urban Development (HUD) rentals
http://www.hud.gov/offices/lead/healthyhomes/index.cfm.
Landlords and Renters may contact the New Mexico Attorney General http://www.nmag.gov/office/student/renting.aspx
Healthy Homes Training Center and Network
http://www.nchh.org/Portals/0/Contents/Healthy_Housing_Checklist.pdf
Tenant/Landlord hotline - To get guidelines for handling situations and the legal approaches to protect tenants and landlords: If you live in Santa Fe call 505 983-8447. If you live elsewhere in New Mexico, call 1-800-348-9370.
Law Access New Mexico - Renters may call at 505 998-4529 in Albuquerque to get advice.
Lawyer Referral Service - Eligible renters over age 55 needing legal aid may call 505 876-6657 and in Albuquerque 505 797-6005.
Senior Citizen Law Office - Eligible residents over age 60 in Bernalillo County may call 505 265-2300.
Residents within the City of Albuquerque may call the 311 hotline.
Where else can I go for mold information or to learn how to remove mold growth myself?
To learn how to clean up small areas of mold visit:
www.epa.gov/mold/cleanupguidelines.html
Who regulates or has jurisdiction to enforce the abatement of mold?
New Mexico does not have any laws or state agencies that regulate mold, and there are no federal indoor air quality standards for mold.
Will the State test, check, or clean my home for mold?
The New Mexico Department of Health provides health information about mold and mold cleanup, but does not test, clean or conduct environmental health assessments for mold.
Get more information about mold health effects or cleanup:
CDC: www.cdc.gov/mold
EPA: www.epa.gov/iaq/mold
OSHA: http://www.osha.gov/dts/shib/shib101003.html
HUD: http://www.hud.gov/offices/lead/healthyhomes/mold.cfm
NCHH: http://www.nchh.org
NMDOH EHEB: http://www.health.state.nm.us/eheb/index.shtml