Mold Colonization of Lungs

How Mold Colonizes Your Lungs

Unfortunately, this is a possibility with certain infections, especially aspergillosis. However, it is treatable with some oral medications and, less frequently, surgery, as holistic treatment such as IV therapy offered at Sponaugle Wellness.

Mold spores spread through the air; any time you’re around a mold colony, you’re breathing in some of those mold spores and introducing them to the sensitive tissue inside your trachea (windpipe) and lungs. The longer you breathe them in, the longer the spores can find an open cavity in your lungs to settle down and colonize.

For most people with healthy lungs, there really isn’t any open space inside, meaning the risk of this happening is relatively low.

The risk is much higher for individuals who have had recent surgeries or other diseases that can cause open cavities in the lungs (emphysema or tuberculosis).

How Can You Tell if There’s Mold in Your Lungs?

If your exposure to mold is fairly minimal, chances are you may not even experience any symptoms. For more prolonged cases of exposure, the symptoms are generally recognizable across the board: sneezing, coughing, wheezing, chest tightness or discomfort, and shortness of breath are all strong indicators that there are mold spores in your lungs.

The issue here is that all of these symptoms can be found in various illnesses or allergic reactions, so it can be difficult to directly pin down mold exposure as the cause. Pay close attention to your symptoms, as well as when they started and how they changed.

Make a mental note of when you discovered mold growing around you, how long you were around it, and whether or not you had any protection (like a medical face covering).

Mold exposure can potentially cause serious problems, but most healthy people have nothing to worry about aside from some uncomfortable, temporary symptoms.

If you’re worried about mold in your home, contact the Sponaugle Wellness Institute to schedule a consultation to learn your treatment options.

How Does Mold Get Into Your Lungs?

Does mold in your home have you running for the hills?

It likely should be due to the dangerous health effects many types of mold can bring in humans and animals.

While many believe that mold growing in the lungs is a myth, it’s accurate. And something that can be a significant risk for people with lung issues like emphysema, asthma, and COPD. Or people who have immune systems which don’t function at 100%.

Can you get mold in your lungs?

Unfortunately, this is a possibility with certain infections, especially aspergillosis.

Mold spores spread through the air; whenever you’re around a mold colony, you’re breathing in some mold spores and introducing them to the sensitive tissue inside your trachea (windpipe) and lungs.

The longer you breathe them in, the longer the spores can find an open cavity in your lungs to settle down and colonize. For most people with healthy lungs, there isn’t any space inside, meaning the risk of this happening is relatively low.

The risk is much higher for individuals who have had recent surgeries or other diseases that can cause open cavities in the lungs (emphysema or tuberculosis).

How Can You Tell if There’s Mold in Your Lungs?

If your mold exposure is relatively minimal, you may not experience any symptoms. For more prolonged exposure cases, the symptoms are generally recognizable across the board: sneezing, coughing, wheezing, chest tightness or discomfort, and shortness of breath are all strong indicators of mold spores in your lungs.

The issue is that all of these symptoms can be found in various illnesses or allergic reactions, so it can be challenging to pin down mold exposure as the cause directly.

Pay close attention to your symptoms, when they started, and how they changed. Make a mental note of when you discovered mold growing around you, how long you were around it, and whether or not you had any protection (like a medical face covering).

If you fear that there may be mold in your lungs, don’t hesitate to contact a mold toxicity expert and let them know what’s going on. It’s always better to be safe than sorry.

Mold exposure can potentially cause serious problems, but most healthy people have nothing to worry about besides uncomfortable, temporary symptoms. If you’re worried about mold in your home, contact your local professional to learn what you can do about it.

Can mold grow in your lungs?

Diagnostic Testing for Mold in Lungs

Speak to your doctor about the signs and symptoms you’re experiencing. This way, he or she can conduct a few medical tests to determine the exact condition. These tests may include:

X Rays: Imaging such as x-rays and CT scans can show the presence of mold in the lungs to help create an accurate diagnosis.

Biopsy: This includes a minor surgical operation in which the physician removes a small sample of lung tissue to send to the lab for testing of mold.

Blood tests: Blood and skin tests can help determine if a person has allergic reactions to the presence of mold, which is a common cause of the development of lung infection due to mold presence.

Mucus Sample: If mold is present in the lungs, a sample of mucus and saliva may help to determine its presence immediately.

Lung Infections Caused By Mold

Aspergillosis is a condition that is characterized by either an allergic reaction or infection of the lungs due to the inhalation of mold. The most common type of mold that causes this condition is aspergillus fumigatus, which can live and grow in both indoor and outdoor environments.

It’s important to note that inhaling mold usually doesn’t cause mold growth in the lungs for average, healthy people. However, those diagnosed with lung conditions, allergies, and/or immune system issues are prone to the development of aspergillosis.

While aspergillus fumigatus can grow on food and waste, it’s most often found indoors in A/C units that haven’t been properly maintained with cleaning or those which leak excess water.

Along with aspergillosis, there are other types of mold that can thrive in the lungs, leading to similar symptoms as mentioned above. These two conditions are histoplasmosis and coccidioidomycosis. Again, the best way to determine if you or a loved one has mold in the lungs is to talk to a doctor about symptoms and get tests performed to determine which type of mold is the cause of infection.

Prevention is Key to Keeping Lungs Safe from Mold

The best thing to do to prevent any dangerous effects of mold, including mold growing in the lungs, is to prevent mold from always growing in your home.

Do you think your home has mold, and you are worried about the safety of yourself or your family? If so, a professional mold remediation company can help determine mold's presence. And to perform proper and safe mold removal so that you and your family are no longer at risk for mold-related health issues.

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