Professor Catrin Moore joins Indoor Air Aware to raise awareness of the health impacts associated with indoor microbial contamination

WHO advisor joins Indoor Air Aware advisory panel to investigate hidden health risks in UK homes

Indoor air pollution is often treated as something that happens outdoors. Traffic fumes, industrial emissions and smog dominate the conversation. Yet for many people, the source of exposure may be much closer to home.

This week, Professor Catrin Moore joined the advisory panel at Indoor Air Aware to support work focused on microbial contamination in indoor spaces, including damp, mould and water-damaged buildings.

Professor Moore is a leading expert in antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and advises the World Health Organization on drug-resistant infections and global health challenges. Her involvement marks an important step in bringing together microbiology, public health and lived experience to better understand the impact indoor environments may be having on human health.

The growing concern around indoor microbial exposure

Across the UK, more households are reporting persistent health symptoms they believe are linked to the buildings they live in. These are far broader than respiratory illness - they include gut issues, fatigue, headaches, skin irritation, neurological symptoms, pain, brain fog, seizures, nose bleeds, fungal infections, and many various other chronic symptoms.

In many cases, people describe a striking pattern. Symptoms improve when they leave the environment, then return - often intensified - when they re-enter the property.

According to Indoor Air Aware, these patterns deserve far more attention.

Lisa Malyon said:

“I work with thousands of people who have been told their symptoms are ‘unexplained’ or worse, that the issue is psychological. Yet the evidence is often sitting within the home itself. Sometimes it’s visible on the walls. Often, it’s hidden behind plasterboard, inside cavities, or within the fabric of the building. One of the clearest patterns we see is that people improve when they leave the environment and relapse when they return. That is a critical signal that the home must be part of the investigation.”

The organisation says this issue has become increasingly urgent following years of energy insecurity, under-heated homes and a national push toward more airtight buildings without sufficient understanding of moisture management and indoor air quality.

Science, lived experience and public health

Professor Moore’s involvement is particularly significant because it combines scientific expertise with personal experience.

Earlier in her career, she experienced a period of ill health that she believes was associated with microbial exposure in her environment. Her recovery coincided with reducing and removing that exposure.

She says the challenge now is building the evidence base needed to better understand these patterns and support people safely.

Professor Moore said:

“Indoor microbial exposure is an overlooked area where science, lived experience and public health intersect. It is difficult to separate causation from correlation without good quality data, however there are reports of symptom improvement following removal from probable exposure together with symptom recurrence on return. These are important signals that we cannot ignore. Reducing exposure safely is a pragmatic and evidence-informed first step while we collect evidence to inform future policy.”

A shift away from “surface-level fixes”

Indoor Air Aware and the UK Centre for Mould Safety say the focus must move away from the hazardous status quo of 'treating' mould with chemicals - it must be removed.

The organisations advocate for approaches that prioritise identifying the source of moisture, safely removing contamination and reducing ongoing exposure, rather than relying on repeated chemical spraying or superficial cleaning.

The advisory panel will help shape guidance aimed at translating microbiological science into practical actions for households, housing providers and professionals working in remediation and building safety.

The wider goal is to improve recognition of indoor environmental factors within healthcare, housing and public policy.

Why this matters now

The UK is only just seeing the tip of the iceberg. Wetter winters, more frequent and intense rainfall events and greater flooding risk are all putting a strain on all archetypes of the UK's housing stock - both old and new, and we must get ahead to protect public health.

ECO3 and ECO4 - the national decarbonisation retrofitting schemes have placed homes under even greater strain, with poorly fitted external and internal wall insulation that has had a negative impact on the building's pathology, leading to moisture ingress, damp and mould.

At the same time, many people experiencing environmentally linked illness say they struggle to access recognition or support through existing clinical pathways.

Indoor Air Aware says this collaboration is about helping close that gap.

The organisation is calling for:

• Greater recognition of indoor environmental factors during health assessments

• Improved standards for mould remediation and water-damage response

• Better public understanding of indoor air quality - a national campaign

• More research into the relationship between microbial exposure and chronic, multi-systemic and often 'unexplained' illness

• A national qualification and framework to enable safer, evidence-led approaches to damp diagnostics and mould remediation that reduce exposure rather than mask symptoms