Mould and babies: what every parent should know
Why babies are more affected
Infants breathe faster than adults, and their lungs and immune systems are still developing, so they take in more air for their size and react more easily to airborne irritants, mould spores included. That doesn't make a small patch a crisis. It does mean mould in the room where a baby sleeps deserves quicker action than the same patch in a storeroom.
Babies also spend long stretches in one room, often with the door and window shut to keep it warm and quiet. Whatever is in that air, they breathe for hours at a time.
Signs worth raising with a doctor
A cough that lingers, a nose that stays blocked or runny, wheezing, or dry, irritated skin can all be linked to damp and mould at home. Every one of them also turns up with ordinary colds and teething, so a symptom on its own tells you nothing about the cause. What helps a doctor is context: when it started, whether it eases when the baby sleeps somewhere else, and whether there's visible mould or a musty smell in the room.
We deal with the mould in the building, not the medical side. If you're worried about your baby's breathing or health, speak to your paediatrician or GP. In an emergency, call 112.
Why nurseries get mould
The cause is almost always condensation. A nursery is kept warm, the window stays closed, and a lot of moisture goes into the air: breath, a humidifier left running, baby laundry drying on an airer, a warm bath next door. When that warm, damp air meets a cold outside wall or a window frame, it turns to water on the surface, and mould follows.
In Cyprus homes a few winter habits add to it: portable gas heaters, which release water vapour as they burn; a sealed room heated by the air-conditioner; and bedrooms on the north side that never see the sun. Ground-floor flats can also pick up damp rising through the walls, which looks similar but needs a different fix.
Where to look in the room
- The corners where an outside wall meets the ceiling or floor.
- Window reveals, sills and the rubber seals around the glass.
- Behind the cot, the changing unit and any wardrobe standing against an outside wall.
- Inside wardrobes and drawers, on stored clothes, blankets and soft toys.
- The cot mattress, especially the underside if it sits on a solid base.
Cleaning a small patch safely
For a small surface patch on a painted wall or window frame, take the baby out of the room first and keep them out until it has aired. Open the window, wear gloves and a mask, and wipe the area with a damp cloth and a mould cleaner rather than brushing it dry, which throws spores into the air. Don't mix cleaning products. Bin the cloths, then let the room air and dry fully before the baby goes back in.
Soft things are harder. A mouldy cot mattress, soft toy or sleeping bag is usually best replaced rather than cleaned (see whether a mattress can be saved). If the patch is large, comes back after cleaning, or the wall behind feels damp, the moisture needs finding first.
Keeping it from coming back
Air the room every day, even in winter: a few minutes with the window wide open does more than a window left slightly open all day. Leave a gap between the cot and outside walls, dry laundry in another room or outdoors, and turn the humidifier off if the windows are wet in the morning. A cheap hygrometer shows whether the room is staying damp.
When to bring in help
If mould keeps returning in a child's room, cleaning it is only dealing with what you can see. We find the cause before we touch the mould, so the fix lasts. An inspection of the nursery takes moisture readings in every affected room and ends with a room-by-room moisture map sent to your phone and a written report with the quote. Small surface growth can then be cleared with surface mould treatment, usually in one visit with no building work.
Mould in your child's room? Don't wait — book an inspection from €75 or call +357 99 759144.