Did you know:

• 40% of new builds in Australia were found to have condensation and mould (Australian Building Codes Board, 2015). In the USA, 47% of residential buildings contain mould (National Institute for Occupational Safety & Health), decreasing home resale value by 20–37% (Appraisal Journal).

  • These findings drove the most significant changes to Australia’s National Construction Code (NCC) in decades. NCC 2022 introduced new condensation management requirements, making designers and builders directly responsible, and liable, for moisture and mould in roofs and walls. Similar liability conversations are now happening in the USA and UK.
    
    

• “Green” buildings are not necessarily healthy buildings. Research shows some green-rated buildings contain the highest levels of formaldehyde, toluene, and xylenes (CSIRO, 2018), yet building codes in Australia, the USA and beyond do not regulate the health and environmental impacts of building materials.
  
  

• Electrical codes in Australia, the USA and beyond were designed to prevent shock, fire and injury, not to account for the health impacts of long-term electromagnetic field (EMF) exposure. Yet policies pushing the electrification of everything can increase indoor EMF exposure levels, without taking cumulative EMF exposure into account. Meanwhile, smart homes increase indoor radiation exposure without adequate safety regulation.

• Research links poor indoor environmental quality to a wide range of health outcomes, including:

  • DNA damage: Formaldehyde, classified as a Group 1 carcinogen by IARC, is present in many common building materials and is associated with DNA strand breaks and leukemia (IARC, 2012; Zhang et al., 2010, NCBI).

  • Respiratory illness: Indoor VOC and particulate exposure is associated with increased rates of asthma, allergic sensitisation and respiratory disease (NIH/PMC meta-analysis, 2021; Birmingham University, 2020) while the World Health Organization guidelines for indoor air quality (dampness and mould, 2009) link mould and dampness to an increased risk of respiratory symptoms, and immune system responses.

  • Sleep disruption and insomnia: EMF exposure has been shown to suppress melatonin production in human studies, with 1 in 6 Australian adults now self-reporting sensitivity to wireless radiation including insomnia (ORSAA Prevalence Study, March 2026; PMC/Frontiers in Public Health).

  • Migraines, headaches and eye-strain: Associated with fluorescent lighting flicker (Nimmo-Smith, Slater & Bedocs, 1989, Lighting Research and Technology).

  • Hormone imbalances: Building material chemicals including BPA, brominated flame retardants and phthalates are classified endocrine disruptors; long-term EMF exposure has also been linked to hormonal changes (EWG Dirty Dozen Endocrine Disruptors, 2013; Eskander et al., 2012, Clinical Biochemistry).

  • Infertility and miscarriage: Magnetic field exposure during pregnancy has been associated with increased miscarriage risk (Li et al., 2002, Epidemiology); radiofrequency radiation limits are currently 8–24 times too high to protect male reproductive outcomes including sperm count, vitality and testosterone (ICBE-EMF/Environmental Health, 2026).

  • Birth defects and low birth weight: Prenatal chromium and heavy metal exposure from certain building materials has been associated with preterm birth and low birth weight (Pan et al., 2017, PMC; Xia et al., 2017, PMC).

  • Compromised immunity and inflammation: Mould-exposed environments trigger systemic immune dysregulation; Voltage Gated Calcium Channel activation from EMF exposure has been proposed as a mechanism for neurological and inflammatory symptoms (WHO Europe, 2009; Pall, 2016, PubMed 26300312).

  • Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS/mould illness): A recognised multi-system illness resulting from exposure to water-damaged buildings (Shoemaker, R.C., survivingmold.com; European Society of Medicine Review).

  • Digestive dysfunction: mycotoxins from mould in water-damaged buildings have been shown to disrupt intestinal barrier function, alter gut microbiome diversity, and trigger inflammatory cascades associated with conditions like IBS (ScienceDirect, 2025; PMC, 2018).

  • Neurological disorders. Multiple built environment exposures have been linked to neurological harm:

    • Arsenic from CCA-treated timber, widely used in residential construction prior to 2006, is linked to adverse neurological effects (Chen & Olsen, 2016);

    • EMF exposure has been associated with neuropsychiatric symptoms via voltage-gated calcium channel activation, including fatigue, concentration difficulties and mood changes (Pall, 2016).

    • Exposure to toxigenic mould has been associated with statistically significant cognitive impairment including memory and executive function deficits comparable to traumatic brain injury (Ryan et al., Applied Neuropsychology, 2003; PubMed 15477176).

  • Cancer risk: A peer-reviewed study published by the International Commission on the Biological Effects of Electromagnetic Fields (ICBE-EMF, 2026) concludes that current radiofrequency radiation (RFR) exposure limits must be reduced by at least 200 times to maintain an acceptable cancer risk. A large-scale systematic review, part-finding by the WHO, found high certainty evidence linking radiofrequency radiation to gliomas (brain tumors) and schwannomas (heart tumors) in animal studies (WHO, 2025).
    
    This is an evolving field. The associations above are drawn from a wide body of peer-reviewed research linking each condition to different environmental exposures found within the built environment, including indoor air quality, building material off-gassing, moisture and mould, and electromagnetic fields.
    
    Clients of The Healthy Home® have experienced firsthand the devastating effects of mould, chemical exposure, and poor building design and construction, in homes less than 10 years old.