Mould and Indoor Air Pollution: How Concerned Should You Be?
Inside Health
BBC
4.4 • 575 Ratings
🗓️ 27 January 2025
⏱️ 29 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
It has been a cold start to the year and for many that means the heating's on, windows are shut and we're drying clothes inside the house. For many people, mould becomes a major concern in winter and the health problems mould can cause have been under more scrutiny since the death of two-year-old Awaab Ishak who died in 2020 from long-term exposure to mould at his home in Rochdale.
At Imperial College London a study called WellHome is underway to monitor levels of mould and other indoor pollutants in homes across the west of the capital. Presenter James Gallagher meets Mum of four Roxanne who had monitoring equipment installed in her house to collect data that could lead to guidance on housing quality and inform how healthcare professionals look for and treat conditions affected by mould.
Joining James at Roxanne's is WellHome's Dr Athena Trachalaki, a Respiratory Registrar with Imperial College NHS trust. With her, to go through all the pollutants that pose a risk to our health indoors is WellHome lead and Professor of Community Health and Policy at Imperial College, Frank Kelly.
Dr Jonathan Grigg, Professor of Paediatric Respiratory and Environmental Medicine at Queen Mary University, London, tells James it could be the end of the line for the gas cooker, and Professor Alastair Lewis who is Professor of Atmospheric Chemistry at the University of York takes a virtual tour of James's home to discuss all the ways James could be cleaning up the air he breathes.
Presenter: James Gallagher Producer: Tom Bonnett Editor: Holly Squire
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Hello, I'm Greg Jenna and good news, Your Dead to Me is back for a new series. Here we go. Yes, we'll explore Emperor Nero's notorious reign with Professor Marybeard and Patton Oswald. I would not want my daughter having the remote control, not alone an empire. We'll dissect the decadent life of Philippe Duke-Dor-Leon with Tom Allen. I've often tried to pretend I'm an aristocrat and being very quickly knocked down. And there'll be so much more with comedians like Olga Koch, Mike Mosniak and Rihalina. I'm excited. You're dead to me. The comedy podcast that takes history seriously. Listen first on BBC Sounds. Before you get stuck in, I want to tell you about some changes we're making to where you can find the latest episodes of this podcast. |
| 0:40.5 | From January the 15th, you'll be able to listen to Inside Health seven days before anywhere else, first on BBC Sounds. |
| 0:47.9 | If you haven't already, you can download the BBC Sounds app to listen to Inside Health. |
| 0:52.5 | It's easy. |
| 0:53.3 | Once you're there, you'll find even more podcasts |
| 0:55.7 | that are available on Sounds before anywhere else. |
| 1:00.4 | Hello there and welcome back to the Inside Health podcast with me, James Gallagher. I hope you're |
| 1:05.1 | all well. It has been a bit of a cold start to the year, though, hasn't it? I know I've had |
| 1:10.0 | the heating on, the window shut, drying clothes inside the house. |
| 1:14.8 | And that, of course, all sounds like a recipe for damp and mould, |
| 1:19.4 | and that can cause health problems. |
| 1:21.8 | I'm sure you'll all remember the case of two-year-old Awab Ishak, |
| 1:25.4 | who died after being exposed to mould at his home in Rochdale. |
| 1:30.1 | Now, mould is just one form of indoor air pollution, and that's the topic for today's programme. |
| 1:36.9 | So I've come to West London to meet Roxanne in the damp home she shares with her four children. |
| 1:43.0 | Roxanne's part of a study by Imperial College London |
| 1:45.7 | looking at air pollution inside our homes. So she's going to give us the tour and then we'll |
| 1:51.0 | meet the researchers too. Hi, Helen. Is that Roxanne?, James. Nice to meet you. Hi. |
| 2:01.6 | Roxanne, thanks for inviting us over because you're going to show me some mould. |
| 2:05.6 | I will do. |
| 2:06.6 | Yes. |
| 2:07.6 | We go upstairs first. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.