A recent study by the American Thoracic Society has found that people living with asthma, especially children, can find more severe attacks triggered when they possess a certain genetic makeup and live in a home with mold.
“We found that the interaction between environmental mold exposure and certain variants of chitinase genes were positively associated with severe asthma exacerbations requiring hospitalization,” said a press release announcing the study.
Chitinase is an enzyme produced during an asthma attack, but people who have asthma have more of this enzyme than other people do.
A selection of children living in homes with both higher and lower than acceptable levels of mold in the home were given genetic tests that found variants of the chitinase gene combined with mold in the home created the most severe asthma attacks that could require a trip to the hospital.
Mold, a known allergen, is typically responsible for the development of asthma in previously unaffected individuals as well as for causing more severe attacks. Previous studies have found that mold may be a key factor in the increase in asthma over the past two decades, as well as weakening immune systems and chronic sinusitis that leave people more vulnerable to developing respiratory issues.
Illnesses like asthma that have the potential to be quite serious can make it that much more important to have your home tested for mold to ensure that indoor air quality in the home is healthy for your family.
As with many service industries, the mold inspection and remediation field is unfortunately plagued by fly-by-night companies. These companies use various tactics to take home and building owners’ money without actually solving their problems.
One such popular tactic is offering free inspections with the hope that you’ll hire them to do the mold removal. The old adage “you get what you pay for” is applicable to any service, including mold inspection and mold removal services.
The scam works likes this: During your free mold inspection, the company will tell you that you’ve got an extreme mold problem when in fact you have none, charging you thousands of dollars for a fake mold removal when no action is necessary.
Choosing a professional mold removal company
Something as serious as mold should not be taken lightly, which is why home and building owners should carefully weigh their options when choosing a mold inspection company: A trustworthy company will always show proof of insurance and industry-recognized certifications, and will be more than happy to explain the measures they have in place to protect their customers.
Mold cannot be identified based on colour or texture, and a mold removal company should never make determinations on these variables. To determine if the mold is dangerous or harmless, it must be looked at under a microscope and properly tested in a third-part laboratory to prevent any conflict of interest. A professional mold inspection company will never tell you that you have toxic black mold without testing it.
Differing species of mold comes in various colors and back mold could be merely allergy-aggravating Alternaria mold, somewhat harmless Ulocladium mold or deadly Stachybotrys, sometimes referred to as “grow-op” mold.
A fly-by-night company will also likely have a fly-by-night website. Their website content, including their company information and even their guarantees may be stolen from other companies’ websites instead of taking the time to develop original content based on their own expertise. To find if this is the case, simply copy and paste a portion of their website into the text box at www.plagiarismchecker.com and see what pops up.
Never hesitate to ask for and follow up on references from the company. A good mold removal company will also be the first to tell you that mold is all around us in the environment, in the air and sometimes in the home, making it easy to show positive testing results for the presence of mold. A professional mold inspsection company should always explain this fact to their customers as well as explaining what they’re doing during an inspection to ensure the customer is informed.
Know what you’re getting into. For professional Mold Inspsections in Toronto and Ontario, Contact us today. We can help.
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