Role of Mold in Asthma Development

In a new study funded in part by NIEHS, researchers led by scientists at the University of Cincinnati (UC) found that mold exposure during a critical window of development was associated with a three-fold greater risk for asthma later in childhood. The study appeared in the August issue of Annals of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology, the scientific journal of the American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology.Tiina Reponen, Ph.D.
“This study should motivate expectant parents – especially if they have a family history of allergy or asthma – to correct water damage and reduce the mold burden in their homes to protect the respiratory health of their children,”
Grace LeMasters, Ph.D.
LeMasters has served as lead researcher on NIEHS grants since 1999 and now oversees three grants to UC. She is also a member of the NIEHS National Advisory Environmental Health Sciences Council. (Photo courtesy of the University of Cincinnati)

Isolating an environmental trigger could lead to better informed preventive efforts to reduce the incidence of asthma, a condition on the rise nationwide and an important public health concern. According to previous studies, asthma is estimated to cause several thousand deaths annually and cost more than $15 billion per year in direct medical expense.

“Early life exposure to mold seems to play a critical role in childhood asthma development,” Tiina Reponen, Ph.D. Exit NIEHS, lead author on the study and a UC professor of environmental health, was quoted as saying in a UC Healthnews press release Exit NIEHS. “Genetic factors are also important to consider in asthma risk, since infants whose parents have an allergy or asthma are at the greatest risk of developing asthma.”

The findings also have implications for reducing health disparities, since asthma occurs at higher rates in low-income communities where mold is more likely to occur in residences, especially those without air conditioning. The standardized approach used in the study may offer outreach workers a more sensitive assessment for accurately identifying homes with potentially harmful levels of mold.