Did you know? 15 November is ‘Clean your fridge day’
It is also known as “Discover a science project you did not know you were growing in your fridge day”.
POLOKWANE – When people think about mold they may want to run out of the room and leave the cleaning up to someone else.
Mold is a type of fungus. The tiny cells of mold are called spores. Mold spores live in the air all the time there are millions of them practically everywhere. But when the mold spores land on a host, they grow and thrive by feeding off the food they land on.
Mold spores feed themselves by producing chemicals that break the composition of the food down so the spores can grow while the food rots away.
Here are some fun facts that people may not know about that little friend hiding in the back of the fridge just waiting for it’s special day to come out.
1. Even the cleanest house hides mold
The idea that a clean house can grow no mold is just a myth. Mold spores are a natural part of our environment. They’re always present even inside the cleanest homes.
2. Some of the stuff is good for you
Mycologists who study the world of fungi are the first to point out that the world owes a great deal of its good health to the Penicillium mold.
3. It can help your garden grow
When you catch a musty fragrance in the breeze in your garden, that means good mold is doing its job. The fungus plays an invaluable role in organic decomposition that keeps garden soil healthy.
4. Some of it is very bad for you
One of the more disturbing facts about mold is how it can affect your health. Not all household fungi are dangerous, but Stachybotrys chartarum deserves its reputation as a highly toxic mold.
5. It can ruin your walls
Mold is a microorganism that constantly multiplies to live. It’s that evolutionary drive that allows the fungus to quickly spread through sheetrock and permanently damage materials.
6. Mold is actually colorful
Most household molds show up as dark splotches, but the unhealthy stuff can present itself in a wide range of colors. Orange, green and even white mold can make itself at home in your home.
7. It needs moisture to live
Mold loves a damp environment especially in dark, hidden spaces. A good way to discourage the fungus is to keep your home’s interior humidity between 30 and 40 percent.
8. Mold and Mildew aren’t the same thing
This is one of those mold facts that always needs clearing up. Mold and mildew are related, but they’re not the same. Mildew only grows on surfaces, and it’s easier to eliminate than its fungal cousin.
9. Mold is just one in 200,000
Mold stands out as just one of more than 200,000 fungal species. That number becomes much more impressive when you consider there are more than 100,000 individual species of mold.
10. It probably won’t win an Oscar
Is mold a fungus or a movie star? The 2012 movie, “Mold,” begs the question, but the answer is really up to the audience. It is something that keeps on keeping people fascinated and it will for many years to come.
Here is a home experiment that will help young minds learn about this interesting organism that will cross their path some time of the other.
1. Here is what you need:
• clear zip-close bags (sandwich-sized
• Water
• 1 slice of bread
• 1 piece of fruit (strawberry, lemon, banana, or apple
• 1 piece of cheese
• 1 cheese puff
2. Here is what you do:
• Place 1 food item in each bag
• Sprinkle water on each item and seal the bag well
• Place the bags on a shelf out of the sun and at room temperature
• Leave the bags undisturbed for 2 days before checking them
• Do any of the food items have white, blue/green, or gray fuzz on them
• Leave the bags for another 2 days
• What has happened and do all food items have mold
• Check the bags every 2 days until the 10th day
3. What has happened
On the 10th day throw the bags away without opening them.
Here is what happened:
The moisture in the bags and the warmth of being at room temperature (or warmer) are the perfect conditions for growing mold.
While there are all sorts of mold spores in the air that landed on the food, you probably noticed that the mold looked different on each food item. That is because different kinds of mold spores like some foods better than others.
There was one food item that never had mold on it—the cheese puff. Do you know why?
Foods with lots of preservatives and chemicals in them do not usually mold. They don’t mold because the preservatives in the food kill the mold spores before they can start growing.
