QUESTIONS WITH SOLUTIONS GRADED A+
✔✔Moisture sources - ✔✔- Kitchen, bathroom, and plumbing leaks
- Excessive watering, sprinkler overspray, drainage problems
- floods, sewer back ups, roof leaks
- high water table and vapor transfer
- life style and condensation
- architectural design and construction defects
✔✔Materials that encourage mold growth - ✔✔- Drywall and latex paint
- wood, paper and cardboard products
- clothing
- wall coverings
- leather
- carpeting, backing materials, and furnishings
- dirt, soil, and dust residue on any surface
- furnace filters and lined duct work
✔✔Signs of mold infectivity - ✔✔- visible mold growth
- water-stained walls, ceilings, carpet, and tack strips
- high humidity
- musty or bad odor
- history of mold problems or previous water intrusion
✔✔Health Effects of Mold: - ✔✔
✔✔About what % of individuals are predicted to have some allergic airway symptoms
from molds over their lifetime? - ✔✔5
✔✔For most allergic individuals, reactions are limited to: - ✔✔- Rhinitis and asthma
- (sinusitis may occur secondarily due to obstruction)
✔✔Categories of mold health effects: - ✔✔- irritation
- allergy
- infection
- toxicosis
✔✔Irritation - ✔✔- For some people, the moldy odor can irritate mucous membranes
and cause headaches or other symptoms.
- odor comes from volatile organic compounds produced by mold as it degrades organic
substrates and is generally considered one of the primary causes of irritation.
✔✔Allergy - ✔✔- Allergic reactions are typically the most common heath problem.
, - symptoms include respiratory problems, and difficulty breathing, nasal and sinus
congestion, burning/watery or reddened eyes, dry hacking cough, nose and throat
irritation, shortness of breath, skin irritation, headaches, memory problems, mood
changes, aches and pains, and possible fever.
✔✔Infection - ✔✔- Immune suppressed individuals at greater risk of infection
- localized or systemic
- ex. Aspergillosis
✔✔Aspergillosis - ✔✔- Common fungal infection requiring hospitalization
✔✔Toxicosis - ✔✔- caused by mycotoxins
✔✔Mycotoxins - ✔✔-Toxic metabolites produced by certain species of mold
- believed to be most prevalent in spores
- occur in both living and dead mold spores
✔✔Effects of mycotoxins: - ✔✔- Nerve damage
- organ damage
- cancer
✔✔Symptoms of toxicosis: - ✔✔- cold and flu-like symptoms
- headaches
- nosebleeds
- memory problems
- fatigue
- dermatitis
- and immune suppression
✔✔How many estimated species of mold are there? - ✔✔100
✔✔Symptoms reported by those affected by mold - ✔✔- nasal and sinus congestion
- cough
- wheezing
- sore throat
- skins and eye irritation
- upper respiratory infections
- burning/watery or reddened eyes
- blurry vision or light sensitivity
- Dry, hacking cough
- headache
- memory problems
- mood swings
- aches and pains
- nosebleeds