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Mold Overview

When mold species that are measured indoors exceed the mold count outdoors, your home or workplace is considered contaminated. Just add water, or moisture, and mold grows and spreads. There are millions of different mold types and species on our earth. This section of Mold-Help.org is dedicated to providing you with a basic understanding of the fungi world and its potential for making you sick.
Image showing magnification of mold

Introduction to Fungi – Videos

in Mold Overview /by Carolyn Willbanks

Mold is everywhere. It’s part of the natural environment, and is not usually a problem until it begins growing inside. It’s important to know about mold, because it might be hiding in your house. In fact, these Introduction to fungi videos are a fun way to find out more. And if you find a great […]

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With a wet basement mold grows everywhere.

Mold is Everywhere

in Mold Overview /by Carolyn Willbanks

You cannot avoid mold. In fact, mold is everywhere. The reason that you do not see piles of dead plant material and other organic material accumulating outside is because of mold. Mold has a purpose in our eco-system. It feeds on dead organic matter. However, mold becomes a serious problem when it begins growing indoors. […]

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Molds on Foods

in Mold Overview /by Carolyn Willbanks

Molds are microscopic fungi that live on plant or animal matter. No one knows how many species of fungi exist, but estimates are tens of thousands or more. Most are filamentous (threadlike) organisms and the production of spores is characteristic of fungi in general. These spores can be transported by air, water, or insects. Unlike […]

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Composite of five different mold species©Wikipedia.com

Are Fungi and Molds Plants?

in Mold Overview /by Carolyn Willbanks

Mold is a living organism that belongs to the kingdom Fungi. Are Fungi Plants? Fungi are unique in that although some appear plant-like, they are neither plant nor animal. Plants from the Plantea kingdom are multicellular organisms, have chlorophyll and perform photosynthesis, the process by which they capture the energy of sunlight and use carbon […]

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https://www.mold-help.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/435px-Fungi_collage.jpg 379 435 Carolyn Willbanks https://www.mold-help.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/moldhelp-654x300.png Carolyn Willbanks2019-02-13 15:25:582019-04-02 21:44:13Are Fungi and Molds Plants?

Mold and Toxic Burden

in Mold Overview /by Carolyn Willbanks

Mold is only one of the many toxins found in water-damaged buildings. Illnesses caused by these toxins or combination of toxins are more complex than many doctors recognize and diagnose. One to the most overlooked factors in treating mold illness is an individual’s toxic burden. Toxic burden is determined by two factors: the levels of […]

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Bathroom window fogged up from steam

13 Silent Signs Your Home Is Moldy

in Mold Overview /by Carolyn Willbanks

So you go awhile between dustings. Let the dog sleep in the bed. Watch moisture bead up on the bathroom window. However, these innocent-seeming habits could be making you and your family really sick. Make sure you address these 13 silent signs your home is moldy. Moisture Too much moisture. While moisture in the home […]

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copy of Mold growing on shower tile

Mold’s Favorite Places in Your Home

in Mold Overview /by Carolyn Willbanks

Fungi (mold) grow by releasing reproductive cells (spores) into the air, just as plants reproduce by spreading seeds. The airborne spores are invisible to the naked eye, which is a major reason mold is such a problem. It is not uncommon to find hundreds or even thousands of mold spores per cubic foot of indoor […]

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Mold around facet of a sink

Mold – the Bottom Line

in Mold Overview /by Carolyn Willbanks

Is Mold a Plant? Molds are organisms which are neither bacteria, plant nor animal. They are part of the fungi kingdom. Unlike plants, molds do not get their energy from the sun through photosynthesis. Like animals, molds digest or “eat” the material they are growing on. Mold’s Job Outside, mold’s primary job on earth is […]

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https://www.mold-help.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/moldly-sink.png 279 375 Carolyn Willbanks https://www.mold-help.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/moldhelp-654x300.png Carolyn Willbanks2017-10-15 15:27:592019-04-05 17:51:37Mold – the Bottom Line

Why is Mold Growing in My Home?

in Mold Overview /by Carolyn Willbanks

Molds are part of the natural environment. Outdoors, molds play a part in nature by breaking down dead organic matter such as fallen leaves and dead trees, but indoors, mold growth should be avoided.  Molds reproduce by means of tiny spores; the spores are invisible to the naked eye and float through outdoor and indoor air. Mold […]

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The Toxic Effects of Fungal Exposure

in Mold Overview /by Carolyn Willbanks

Once one is tested and diagnosed with mycotoxicosis, one should begin to try to assess the extent of the fungal infection and how impaired, if any, one may be.  This is exceptionally important as most physicians are inexperienced in dealing with this illness, and finding out as much as one can would possibly most helpful in […]

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Drawing of Fungi Life Cycle© biology.gatech.edu

The Life Cycle of Fungi

in Mold Overview /by Carolyn Willbanks

The life cycle of most indoor fungi goes through a 4-stage life cycle.

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https://www.mold-help.org/wp-content/uploads/2005/07/FungalLifeCycle.jpg 713 800 Carolyn Willbanks https://www.mold-help.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/moldhelp-654x300.png Carolyn Willbanks2005-07-12 14:25:122019-02-28 14:14:25The Life Cycle of Fungi

Fungi Prefers Dark, Not Sunlight

in Mold Overview /by Carolyn Willbanks

Fungi live mainly in the dark, and they like it that way – out of the sunlight, they can avoid desiccation and damage from ultraviolet rays. The ability to sense light, therefore, is adaptive for fungi of all kinds. A pair of light-sensing proteins had been identified in the model fungus Neurospora crassa, an ascomycete […]

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Mold-Help Glossary of Terms

in Mold Overview /by Carolyn Willbanks

-=( A )=- Absidia sp.: A zygomycete fungus which is considered common to the indoor environment. Reported to be allergenic. May cause mucorosis in immune compromised individuals. The sites of infection are the lung, nasal sinus, brain, eye, and skin. Infection may have multiple sites. Absidia cormbifera has been an invasive infection agent in AIDS […]

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Toxic Mycotoxins

in Mold Overview /by Carolyn Willbanks

Dr. Straus, a Texas Tech professor, is the author of a 1998 study that showed a strong correlation between Stachybotrys and public buildings that appeared to make people sick. “If you’re working with this stuff, you’ve got to wear a moon suit and a respirator,” he said. “If you get this stuff on your skin, it’s […]

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https://www.mold-help.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/moldhelp-654x300.png 0 0 Carolyn Willbanks https://www.mold-help.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/moldhelp-654x300.png Carolyn Willbanks2004-10-03 21:02:342019-02-22 23:19:06Toxic Mycotoxins
Photo of black mold in the ceiling seam of a reader's home

Potential Signs and Mitigating Factors of a Mold Problem

in Mold Overview /by Carolyn Willbanks

POTENTIAL SIGNS of a Mold Problem Black, brown, orange, pink, or green speckled walls or around any plumbing grout or tile. Musty, earthy, or urine scented odor. Deficient siding, siding that is not covering a building adequately, or certain types appear to be more prone to mold (i.e., Hardie Plank which may not be installed […]

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https://www.mold-help.org/wp-content/uploads/2004/10/WSE.jpg 433 600 Carolyn Willbanks https://www.mold-help.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/moldhelp-654x300.png Carolyn Willbanks2004-10-03 21:02:302019-03-05 20:36:37Potential Signs and Mitigating Factors of a Mold Problem
Microscopic view of black mold

Differences Between Fungi and Plants

in Mold Overview /by Carolyn Willbanks

Fungi have no chlorophyll and therefore cannot make their own food. Fungi are exo-digesters (digest food outside their bodies by excreting enzymes that ooze out of the fungus body, and then absorb digested material through the cell walls). Fungal cells are simple in structure and function – each a clearly visible central body with nucleus. […]

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Cabinet pulled away from the wall to reveal black mold©https://www.moldremediationus.com/

Is Hidden Mold At Home Making You Sick?

in Mold Overview /by Carolyn Willbanks

Other than occasional asthma episodes, Caitlin Murray was a healthy five year-old girl, until she became terribly sick three years ago and no one could find out why. Her mother, Jill Murray, claimed her daughter would experience severe headaches, swelling of the face and would throw up for seven to 10 days. Despite being tested […]

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