Mold belongs to a group of microscopic fungi and is spore-producing organisms that can thrive in certain indoor conditions such as when there is a temperature range conducive to growth, sufficient humidity, and a source of nutrients to sustain growth. Mold is ubiquitous in nature and excessive mold can result in offensive odors from the organic compounds released by certain molds during their life cycles.

The American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) is a global non-profit organization and is dedicated to advancing the safety, health, and environmental (SH&E) profession and advancing the technical, scientific, managerial, and ethical knowledge and skills of occupational safety, health, and environmental professionals.

Awareness & Training

Mold professionals such as those at the ASSE believe that mold has become an important health issue that cannot be ignored. Mold professionals around the word are being called upon to respond to mold-related issues such as development and implementation of precautionary measures and programs, identification of mold contamination in indoor environments, identification and awareness of workers and workplace activities that increase the potential for exposure to mold, and development and implementation of remediation plans and projects to remove mold from indoor workplaces workplace employee occupants and remediation workers. Mold professionals are of the opinion that they can assist people by providing guidelines under which such work can be executed in a manner that provides protection to workers and which does not cause increased risk to building occupants.

Effects on health

Although current research does not indicate that mold causes illness in the healthy, there is evidence that excessive exposure to mold may aggravate pre-existing respiratory conditions such as allergic rhinitis and asthma, and may cause allergic reactions in some people. Although adverse health effects related to exposure to mold have been reported, at this time, there is not a conclusive link to pulmonary bleeding nor is there conclusive evidence that mold-related illnesses are increasing.

Apart from disinfecting mold affected areas mold professionals contribute to awareness training that provides people with the knowledge and skills that are needed to identify impending mold contamination and situations that could require remediation may be needed, as detection of and responding to mold-related situations may well be a new area of activity for many.

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