Preventing Allergies at Work Takes a Multi-Pronged Approach

Sept. 3, 2008— -- About once a month, Desiree DeFlorimonte had to change a ceiling panel in one corner of her office at work, encrusted as it was with black mold. This pattern continued for seven years, over the course of which DeFlorimonte, 60, suffered from a barrage of respiratory problems.

"It was hell living through it," DeFlorimonte said. "I was at the doctor's office every few months," constantly sneezing, coughing, and experiencing respiratory infections, she said.

Her mold allergies, and the medications she took to relieve them, made DeFlorimonte, a reading specialist at a Maryland grade school, miserable -- and less productive.

But many go through the work day under similar duress, enduring allergies and allergy-like symptoms caused by their work environment.

"Allergies in the workplace is a bigger issue than a lot of employers give credit for," said Mike Tringale, director of External Affairs at the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America. "Many employers have not stepped up to that plate."

While prevention may be difficult, or in some cases impossible, there are a few proactive things one can do in order to make the itchy, watery, fatigue-causing symptoms less problematic.

Diagnosing an allergy or a sensitivity can help determine what the problem is and where it might be coming from. DeFlorimonte's doctor diagnosed her with a severe mold allergy, one that did not bother her when she took time away from the office.

But often symptoms are non-specific and can include irritation in the air and nasal passages, burning eyes, headaches and fatigue. If these types of symptoms come on after an hour in the workplace and resolve within an hour after leaving, the office environment itself may be to blame, according Dr. Karin Pacheco, an occupational medicine specialist at the National Jewish Medical and Research Center in Denver, Colorado.

The two elements that can wreak havoc on buildings and sicken employees are water and air. Dampness, from leaks or condensation, creates ideal conditions for irritants like mold. Poor ventilation and filtration means the air stagnates and can contain higher concentrations of those mold spores or other irritants.