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Mould in Home May Mean Baby Breathing
Problems
Mon July 21, 2003 05:31 PM ET
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - High
fungus levels in the home can cause breathing problems, even pneumonia,
for infants, new research suggests.
Dampness in the basement or other rooms is known to cause breathing
problems for children and young adults. The new findings suggest that this
may be due to the presence of fungi, which thrive in damp locations.
However, the results also indicate that fungi can be a problem even when
the entire house is dry.
In a study of
499 children with at least one allergic parent, Dr. Diane R. Gold, from
Harvard University in Boston, and colleagues evaluated the effect of
domestic fungal levels on breathing problems in the first year of life.
The
researchers' findings are reported in the American Journal of Respiratory
and Critical Care Medicine.
After
considering other factors such as house dampness and visible mould or
mildew, the authors found that exposure to high levels of fungi made
breathing problems much more likely for infants. For example, infants who
lived in homes with high levels of one type of fungi--Zygomycetes--were
nearly twice as likely to develop problems as other infants.
To determine
whether a home is likely to cause breathing problems for an infant, the
authors recommend not only looking for wet spots and mould, but also
measuring fungi levels.
SOURCE: American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine July
15, 2003
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