The Dangers of an Unclean House

The Disease is coming from INSIDE the house!

For most of us, the most dangerous part of our day is simply driving or riding in a car, or so you might think. A dirty house can, in fact, be the place you are in the most risk of harm. Diseases love filth and a filthy home become a breeding ground for dangerous ailments. What kinds of pestilence are lurking in your home?

The Diseases

Pneumoconiosis

You may be familiar with Black Lung, which was a disease coal miners often contracted from breathing in coal dust. Well less known is brown lung. Chances are good you don’t have a coal mine in your house, but you probably do have cotton and fabric. Dust from cotton and fabrics can cause the lung disease pneumoconiosis, which causes your lungs to become inflamed and scarred along with the loss of blood vessels and air sacs.

While not the most common ailment on our list, a major cause of contraction is being around dust and lots of it for long periods of time. So ask yourself, when was the last time your bookshelf was dusted? The other horrible things this disease can do is cause a shortness of breath, cough, phlegm, fever, fatigue, heart failure, tuberculosis and lung cancer.

Considering that one of the treatments of this disease, for simple cases, is just not being exposed to dust, we recommend a routine dusting to keep you safe.

Mold Exposure

Yes, yes we all know about the dreaded black mold which, if you believe social media, will not only instantly kill you but also reposes your home and kick your puppy while it is at it. But in reality all molds can cause an issue for you, especially if you are allergic to it. Mold enjoys warm, damp places like bathrooms, basements and crawlspaces. Mold has many different types but each one should be treated with concern and dealt with quickly.

The nasty things that mold can do to you include: nasal and sinus congestion, difficulty breathing, wheezing, cough, throat irritation, skin irritation, headache, and eye irritation. Those allergic to mold can experience significantly more dangerous symptoms.

Clostridium Difficile

Also more commonly known as C. Diff, this nasty little bug is commonly found and spread in contaminated and unclean bathrooms and diaper changing areas. Commonly repulsed by handwashing and basic sanitation, C. Diff can cause fever, nausea, abdominal pain, and other horrible things that will certainly make you regret certain decisions.

By CDC/ James Archer - https://phil.cdc.gov/phil/details.asp?pid=16786, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=57207136

Our recommendation? Don’t ever give C. Diff the chance to strike. Keep your bathroom clean and wash your hands often. Even better, get a professional cleaner or a maid service on the case and C the Diff of what your home can look like! Eh? Ehhhh?

Pinworm

Yes. Actually. Pinworm is a parasite that will lay eggs in a rather sensitive area and cause enough pain to put you out of commission. The larvae will hatch inside your small intestine and then grow and bite and crawl their way out of you through the aforementioned sensitive area. Now pinworms, like most parasites, are associated with contaminated food and drink, but pinworm eggs are primarily spread after touching an area, usually quite a sensitive one that is infected with pinworm eggs, and then they stay under the fingernails until deposited somewhere where they can hatch or lay in wait to gain purchase on skin again. However, here is the horrifying bit of the matter. Pinworm eggs can survive on unwashed bedding, and excessive dust, just waiting for someone to touch it.

By Azienda Ospedaliera SS. Antonio e Biagio e Cesare Arrigo, Alessandria

Legionnaires’ Disease

Legionnaire’s Disease might sound like something one would contract by having an obsession with Rome, but in fact most people are more aware of it than you might think, and among all diseases on this list, this one is the scariest. Legionnaires’ Disease is a severe type of pneumonia caused by the Legionella bacteria which grows in warm man-made water systems like water towers, hot tubs, plumbing, shower heads, and drains. This disease is often fatal (about 1 in 10 cases ending up in a casualty) and is contracted by breathing in contaminated water vapor the bacteria travels in.

Lung tissue after exposure. Image used with permission as public domain work from the CDC.

Keep your showers clean. Keep your hot tubs and bathrooms clean.

This disease will initially show up as a headache, muscle aches, and a high fever of 104 degrees or higher. After a couple of days this will progress into a cough which might result in mucus or blood, shortness of breath, chest pain, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, and confusion along with other mental changes. It can cause infection in existing open sores. While healthy adults will probably see the symptoms clearing after a week, it is better to see a doctor if you think you have been exposed.

KEEP YOUR SHOWERS AND DRAINS CLEAN.

While we don’t do plumbing, we can certainly keep your home and family safe from disease by cleaning your home with a professional touch. By cleaning up dust and sanitizing surfaces, you are making sure your home remains safe and secure. Experience the royal treatment! Get a free, customized quote today for your home in the Arvada, Westminster, Broomfield, Denver, Thornton, Northglenn, Erie, or Golden areas.

When you know a clean home is a healthy home, contact us!