May 21, 2012
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - You may be expecting allergy relief from the rainfall, so why are you still stuffy? You may be allergic to mold.
We talked to a local allergist about symptoms, and how you can feel better.
You may not even know it's there, but mold could be causing your stuffy nose, coughing and itchy eyes.
"In an area where you don't have good circulation of air, where the humidity rises above 60% for more than 24 hours you're going to have high mold counts in those areas," says Dr. Ty Prince, an allergist here in East Tennessee.
Dr. Prince says mold allergies are extremely common in East Tennessee all year long.
"You're going to see the mold counts way up when the ground gets good and wet, and then of course, we have lots of lakes and marsh lands, so we're going to see a lot of mold."
Knowing the difference between a mold allergy and a pollen allergy can be tricky.
"You're going to see the itchy, sneezy symptoms with pollen, and in my opinion, more of the cold like symptoms with the mold," says Dr. Prince.
If you see or smell mold, you could have toxic levels, which Dr. Prince says can be dangerous to your health.
"The toxic symptoms are going to be more headache, burning in the nose, sore throats, maybe even inability to focus."
He says your best bet is to avoid moldy areas and take medicine to reduce symptoms.
"Certainly take those medicines before you get into the mold, it's going to help you a lot better than if you take it after the fact."
If you have severe symptoms and can't get relief, see your doctor.
Cleaning mold can be a difficult task. If it's in your walls, Dr. Prince says you may need to remove sheet rock and insulation and allow the area to dry out before you rebuild.
To learn more about mold allergies, click on the link below.
