The Breathe Easy Blog

Spring has sprung a leak. When rainy weather moves in, most of us think about blooming flowers, greener lawns, and maybe a little extra mud by the front door. What we don't always think about is what all that moisture is doing inside the home. A few wet umbrellas by the entryway. Damp shoes on the floor. A basement that suddenly smells a little off. A crawlspace that stays humid for days after a storm.

Musty odors are more than just unpleasant; they signal mold or mildew growth that can affect your respiratory health. Here's how to identify the source, clean it up safely, and keep it from coming back.

Mold is one of the most common yet overlooked indoor air quality hazards, linked to respiratory symptoms, allergic reactions, and even mood changes. Here's what the science says and the practical steps you can take to protect your family.

Mold thrives indoors during winter because we seal up homes, trap moisture from cooking/bathing/breathing, and create condensation when warm air hits cold surfaces. About 47% of U.S. homes have visible mold. While "black mold" isn't necessarily more dangerous than other molds, exposure can trigger allergies, worsen asthma, and cause respiratory issues, especially in susceptible people. Prevention comes down to controlling humidity (keep it 30-50%), fixing leaks fast, improving ventilation, and wiping down condensation. Small mold patches you can clean yourself; larger areas need professionals.

Black mold (scientific name Stachybotrys Chartarum) isn't a new health issue, but it seems that awareness of the dangers it poses has finally reached the mainstream. Black mold exposure can have serious health effects. Here's a few ways to detox from black mold exposure.

You think of your home as a safe space away from the rest of the world. But black mold may be hiding away in dark, damp areas and having a direct impact on your health. Black mold can take hold in homes, offices, schools, dorms or anywhere else it finds the right conditions. It may take years for the visual signs to appear, but all that time your health can be paying the price.

Do you want the air you breathe to be clean? Do you want the air other people breathe to be clean too? Of course you do - everyone does. But unfortunately, there are microscopic contaminants floating around in the air we all breathe. Let's set our focus on an extremely common particle that can be found in most buildings: Mold. We hear the word "mold" all the time, but did our familiarization with it result in us forgetting how dangerous it really is? It's time to take a look at mold basics.

Mold is a type of fungi that thrives off of damp areas, especially within a home. These areas can include anywhere there is moisture - so be cautious of bathrooms, gyms, and laundry rooms. To control mold growth, you must control the moisture within the building, and make sure humidity is below 30-60% to prevent the growth of mold spores, that can actually travel through the air.