Is the air in my home making me sick?

The “immediate” symptoms of poor indoor air quality can often resemble a cold or allergies. You can feel fatigue or dizziness and may frequently get headaches and experience eye, nose, or throat irritation.
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Could something in your house be making us sick?

Can your home make you sick? If you are regularly experiencing cold or flu symptoms, seemingly only when you're at home, it could be from sick building syndrome. Sick building syndrome is when mold, water damage, poor indoor air quality or other issues in your home are constantly making you sick.
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Why do I feel sick in my own house?

Lack of air flow allows for indoor air pollution to build up and cause health issues like asthma or sick building syndrome. In fact, modern furnishings, synthetic building materials, and even your own carpet may carry more chemicals than expected. These chemicals can make up to 90 percent of indoor air pollution.
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How do you test if your house is making you sick?

Is Your House Making You Sick?
  1. Respiratory Symptoms – congestion, aggravated asthma or allergies, sinus infections.
  2. Cognitive Issues – foggy thinking, sleep disturbance, frequent headaches.
  3. Emotional Changes – feeling agitated or depressed.
  4. Physical Symptoms – stomach discomfort, muscle aches, fatigue, rashes, sore throat.
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What are the symptoms of sick house syndrome?

Indicators of SBS include:

Building occupants complain of symptoms associated with acute discomfort, e.g., headache; eye, nose, or throat irritation; dry cough; dry or itchy skin; dizziness and nausea; difficulty in concentrating; fatigue; and sensitivity to odors.
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Is my house making me sick: Indoor air quality problems, Simple steps to improve indoor air quality



How can I test my home for toxins?

There are VOC inspections that can be performed by a professional in your home. They're not as common as mold or radon inspectors, but there are professionals out there. They might be called a home inspector, industrial hygienist, or some other term. A VOC home test can measure for hundreds of chemicals in the air.
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How do you know if your house has toxic mold?

Toxic mold can also have a grayish, soot-like texture, or a slimy, wet surface. In some cases, you may even notice furry orange or brown spots. If you find mold with any of these qualities in your home, don't get too close, and call a professional right away.
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Why does my room make me feel sick?

Dust, dust mites, dander, hair, pest droppings, and textile fibers. Byproducts (such as carbon monoxide) from combustion appliances like gas furnaces and stoves. Mold and mildew spores. Radon.
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Can sleeping in a dusty room make you sick?

That's according to a new study in the journal Environmental Science and Technology. Those chemicals and others in dust have been linked to serious illnesses such as asthma and cancer, as well as to hormonal changes and developmental and reproductive problems, the researchers say.
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How can I test the air in my home for mold?

When testing the air for mold, the best option is typically an air pump that collects samples for evaluation in a laboratory. However, some mold test kits use collection film or petri dishes exposed to the air as a means of testing for mold.
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How do you test if mold is making you sick?

A blood test, sometimes called the radioallergosorbent test, can measure your immune system's response to mold by measuring the amount of certain antibodies in your bloodstream known as immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibodies.
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What does mold poisoning feel like?

Primarily, mold illness is associated with allergic reactions that mimic seasonal allergies. Respiratory symptoms such as wheezing, coughing, watery eyes, and skin irritation are the predominant symptoms.
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How can I test the air in my room?

How to Test The Air Quality in Your Home
  1. Purchase an indoor air quality monitor.
  2. Test for mold in the air.
  3. Install carbon monoxide alarms.
  4. Conduct a radon test.
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What are the three most common toxins for which homes are tested?

The Most Common Toxins Found in Homes Today
  1. Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) ...
  2. Pesticides. ...
  3. Mold and Other Fungal Toxins. ...
  4. Phthalates and PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride) ...
  5. Dioxins. ...
  6. Heavy Metals. ...
  7. Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs) ...
  8. Chloroform.
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What should I test my home for?

The 4 Things You MUST Test for in Your Home Right Now
  1. Radon. Radon gas is a cancer-causing radioactive gas that seeps up from the soil and gets into our homes through cracks in the foundation, crawl spaces and basements. ...
  2. Lead Paint. While lead is no longer allowed in paint, it was legal up until 1978. ...
  3. Water. ...
  4. Indoor Air.
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How do you know if the air in your house is clean?

8 Ways to Know If Your Indoor Air Quality Is Bad
  1. 1) Pay Attention to Your Allergies. ...
  2. 2) Notice New or Unusual Symptoms. ...
  3. 3) Be Careful of Your Lungs. ...
  4. 4) Note Your Surrounding Environment. ...
  5. 5) Note Home Improvements or Repairs. ...
  6. 6) Rule Out Other Culprits. ...
  7. 7) Look for Inconsistencies In Air Distribution. ...
  8. 8) Contact a Professional.
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How do I improve the air quality in my home?

7 ways to improve indoor air quality and reduce air pollution in...
  1. Change your AC filter. ...
  2. Don't forget about other air filters. ...
  3. Check your air ducts. ...
  4. Use cooking vents. ...
  5. Keep your rugs and carpets clean. ...
  6. Control humidity in your home. ...
  7. Buy indoor plants to freshen the air.
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Is there an app to test air quality in your home?

AirVisual is one of the most comprehensive AQI apps for Android and iOS. In addition to letting you see quality levels, AirVisual offers a range of other features. One of these is health recommendations, through which the app shows steps you can take to avoid getting sick.
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How long does it take to show symptoms of mold exposure?

These symptoms usually first appear 2 to 9 hours after exposure and last for 1 to 3 days. Other affected persons have progressive shortness of breath and cough, as well as weight loss. Work-relatedness may only become apparent over long holidays if symptoms resolve and then recur on return to work.
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How do doctors test for mold in your body?

Blood test.

Your doctor takes a blood sample and then sends it to a laboratory to measure the number of certain antibodies, which can indicate your immune system's sensitivity to different mold species.
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Can mold inside walls make you sick?

In some cases, mold in your home can make you sick, especially if you have allergies or asthma. Whether or not you're allergic to molds, mold exposure can irritate your eyes, skin, nose, throat, and lungs.
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Do air purifiers help with mold?

Do air purifiers help with mold? Air purifiers help capture mold spores from the air, preventing them from reproducing and spreading throughout your home. While air purifiers won't help treat active mold that's already present on surfaces, they are a great way to control the spread of airborne mold particles.
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What does black mold smell like?

It's often described as musty and earthy, and may even smell like rotting vegetables or plants. You might notice a musty smell, but not be able to see any mold growing. In this case, you should look for areas that might be exposed to water.
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What are the symptoms of black mold?

Symptoms of Black Mold Exposure
  • Coughing.
  • Postnasal drip.
  • Sneezing.
  • Dry, scaly skin.
  • Itchy eyes, nose, or throat.
  • Nasal congestion.
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How do you detox your body from mold?

Sweating. Some people recommend sweating, or using a sauna, to support the process of mold detoxification. No research confirms that sweating can specifically help address the effects of mold. But a 2020 review suggests sweating does play an important role in your body's natural detoxification process.
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