Understanding the concept of toxic body burden and its unique effect on our bodies and their systems can help us all to heal more efficiently—especially those of us impacted by mold-related illness. I think that examining this topic forces us to look at the whole picture, rather than just one thing, like a mold exposure, to determine what is holding us back from being healthy.
Since this topic is so broad and cannot possibly be covered in one post, I am going to try to explain toxic burden and how all of these things toxins, antigens, pathogens are gaining entrance to your body. In the future, I will address testing for toxins, detox, and specific toxins, like heavy metals.
So first, what’s happening in our lives today to make our bodies so toxic?
Now, more than ever, we are eating commercially farmed, mass produced, genetically engineered or processed foods. Our sugar consumption as a population is higher than it has ever been. Our buildings and homes are designed with energy efficiency in mind. Our homes are built with lower-cost, manmade building materials that contain harmful chemicals and lock air and moisture in, creating the perfect breeding ground for bacteria, viruses and fungi. We are also more sedentary and spend less time outdoors than ever before. It is sort of the perfect storm for our bodies to become sick.
As a result, chronic illness and inflammatory disease is on the rise, while acute illness is less pervasive. More and more children are being born sick or immunocompromised than ever before. And, for the first time in history, life spans are decreasing, meaning our children are not expected to live as long as us. Things are no longer black and white. I mean, the term “mold illness,” wasn’t even part of the vernacular 20 years ago, unless you were talking about farmer’s lung.
When toxins enter our bodies, whether in-vitro, orally, through the nose or through the skin, they can cause inflammation and immune system dysregulation which makes us more susceptible to autoimmune disorders, other chronic diseases and overall sickness such as colds, flus and allergies.
Then, viruses, bacteria, yeasts, parasites, and mold aggravate any previously existing body burden. Research is actually revealing that some microorganisms interact directly with chemicals to boost infection. If you are like me, and have had a battle with something like mold illness, you know that this is true, because you probably first went to the doctor for a sinus infection, or a GI issue, or something else that started your journey to finding out that mold was in your environment and the catalyst to your declining health.
