Mould and fungi at home in autumn and winter — when they can trigger allergies and what you can do

Important: this is an educational article. It does not replace a medical consultation or allergy diagnostics. Tests at the AGAMED clinic are indicative and supportive in nature.

In autumn and winter we spend more time indoors, air our homes less, and heating, cooking, laundry and showers raise humidity. These are good conditions for moulds, and their spores can trigger allergic symptoms in some people. Below we explain where they come from, how they can show up, and what you can realistically do at home.

Where fungal spores in the air come from

Spores come from two sources: outdoors and inside your home.

• Outdoors: Alternaria spores occur mainly from March to November (peaking in May and September), while Cladosporium occurs from April to November (peaking from July to September). Autumn, which is also the wild-mushroom season, brings high spore concentrations in the air.
• Indoors: Aspergillus and Penicillium spores are usually present all year round. They thrive on high humidity, limited ventilation and lack of light, such as in bathrooms, cellars, laundry rooms, saunas or holiday cottages. They can also be found in air-conditioning systems (which is why regular cleaning matters) and in house dust.

How a spore allergy can show itself

People sensitive to fungal spores typically develop symptoms of allergic rhinitis and conjunctivitis:

• a watery runny nose,
• sneezing, often in fits,
• an itchy nose and eyes, or conjunctivitis.

Some people also develop asthma symptoms such as coughing or shortness of breath, which need medical advice. Allergy to mould spores is one of the more common inhalant allergies, often occurs alongside pollen or house dust mite allergy, and may increase the risk of asthma. It can be seasonal, but most often lasts all year round, with worse symptoms in summer and autumn.

Allergy or a cold?

One symptom alone cannot settle it, and diagnosis is a doctor's job. There are, however, observations worth noting down and showing to an allergist:

• symptoms return in the same places, for example after entering a damp cellar or cleaning the bathroom,
• a watery runny nose and an itchy nose or eyes dominate,
• complaints last for weeks rather than a few days,
• other allergies, such as to pollen or dust mites, often go with them.

We cover house dust mites, which can worsen symptoms in a similar way during the heating season, in a separate article: House dust mites — why symptoms get worse in winter.

Dampness as a warning sign

In its 2009 guidelines the World Health Organization identifies dampness as the key risk indicator. Excess moisture encourages micro-organisms that release spores and volatile organic compounds into the air. That is why the most important step is to prevent dampness and remove its causes, rather than just masking the effects.

What you can do at home

• Air your home regularly, especially after showering, cooking and doing laundry.
• Look for the cause of the dampness: leaks, water stains, cold walls, no ventilation in the bathroom. Simply painting over a stain does not remove the cause.
• Be careful with air humidifiers if you react to mould. Humid air favours its growth.
• Clean your air conditioning if you have one.
• For extensive or recurring mould, consult a building or ventilation specialist.

What we can do at AGAMED

If you would like to see what you might react to, at the AGAMED clinic in Szczecin we carry out indicative allergy tests using bioresonance, which include moulds and fungi. We treat the result as supportive information, not a diagnosis: it does not replace tests with an allergist. How to prepare is described in How to prepare for an allergy test, and current prices are in the price list. Want to book? Contact · tel. 519 055 858.

Sources

• Medicover, Alergia na grzyby — objawy, leczenie, jak ją rozpoznać? (Allergy to fungi — symptoms, treatment, how to recognise it; in Polish) — medicover.pl
• WHO Europe, WHO guidelines for indoor air quality: dampness and mould (2009) — who.int