Mold can make life very difficult for mold allergy sufferers. Mold spores can manifest symptoms comparable to other types of allergy, which include uncontrollable sneezing, watery eyes, sinus infections, difficulty breathing and also severe coughing. If you suffer from mold allergies and find yourself unable to stop coughing, you may have mold growing nearby.
General Information
Mold allergies can manifest themselves at any point during a person's life. Even if you have never experienced mold allergy symptoms before, you can still develop allergies. Common causes include heredity and prolonged mold exposure. Not all molds produce allergy symptoms. Allergenic molds include Alternaria, Aureobasidium, Aspergillus, Cladosporium, Helmin thosporium, Penicillium and Rhizopus. Only a trained mold expert can examine spores microscopically and determine the exact type of spore, but you should treat all mold — allergenic or otherwise — as potentially harmful.
Respiratory Impact
Mold allergies can result in skin rashes as spores come into contact with the skin, but like most allergies, mold allergies have the greatest impact on the upper-respiratory tract. When mold grows, it releases new spores into the atmosphere. These spores can then enter your airways through the nose and mouth and begin wreaking havoc on your respiratory system. Some allergy sufferers have greater sensitivity than others.
Mold Allergies and Cough
The respiratory exposure of mold allergens can contribute to coughing in numerous ways. For example, the body uses coughs as a defense mechanism to remove pollutants and impurities from the throat and esophagus. Mold spores can reach as far as the lungs, inflaming them and further contributing to coughing. Additionally, if you also suffer from asthma, mold allergies can severely exacerbate asthma symptoms, resulting in painful coughing.
Additional Information
If you begin to experience allergy symptoms such as coughing, remove yourself from the environment containing the mold. If the mold exists in your home, contact a mold remediator. Just because you experience these symptoms in a mold-affected environment does not automatically mean that you have mold allergies. While some molds are described as allergenic, others are identified as pathogenic, and these types of molds can attack the respiratory and sinus tracts of anybody, not just allergy sufferers. A doctor can help you to determine whether you have an allergy.
