Mold in the News

This is breaking news, so I wanted to be sure to bring it to your attention.

Today, THIS STORY about resistant strains of an invasive fungal infection is being circulated throughout news media in the U.S. What is interesting to me is that this story is not so new. Since my family and I have accepted that we are vulnerable in the “mold world” now for about 3 years, I have seen and heard hauntingly similar scenarios multiple times.

A patient is sick after moving into a new home. Their immune system becomes totally shot from trying to fend off the mold onslaught, and they all of a sudden become sick with every aliment under the sun. They have Candida patches growing on their skin and severe respiratory problems. Because they were in good health prior to moving into the home, it then takes time to finally figure out that they have mold.  They are then given the choice to either get out or remediate the home, and then seek proper medical treatment from a doctor or doctors skilled in treating mold-exposure patients. Only then, are they able to regain health and vitality over time. Some people, like myself, take years to recover and must employ more than one detox method to cleanse their bodies of not only the fungus, but the toxins left behind by the fungus. It is a scary and serious issue that, for some reason, is controversial to speak of, because traditional medicine still has doubts about the seriousness or existence of “toxic mold.”

Today, more than writing anything new to impart, I want to share a very compelling article in ONCOLOGY NEWS Nov 2014. The article is entitled “Fungi and Their Mycotoxins: An Underappreciated Role in Cancers.” It is an older article, but was recently brought to my attention by a doctor who helped me and my family through our mold ordeal. While the article is a bit dense, with lots of biomedical and scientific terminology, it is still an interesting and worthwhile read, even for some of us that are not experts.  Asked why a mold cleaning blog is posting an article like this, I am also focused on the long term health of me and my family. Cancer is a terrible disease and articles like this one help me to recognize the importance of taking good care of my body and the environment I live in. Articles like this one also re-energize my passion for writing and sharing this blog with others, which is important to keeping what I write pertinent to you.

This particular article addresses the links between cancer and fungal infections that are caused by mold mycotoxins (the toxic chemical by-products produced by some molds). In other words, the article conjectures that the way in which cancer cells and fungal infections alter healthy cells in the body, have similarities that should not be overlooked. The article also points to the many likely, but not yet proven links in humans between cancers and the mycotoxins produced by some types of mold.

I struggled with whether or not to post this. I have strong feelings about this topic, so I decided to go ahead and do it, in case some of you struggle with it too.

Today, I’m addressing a topic that affects my life and my world as “mold blogger” everyday. That topic is whether or not mold, and more specifically, mold in your living environment, is really dangerous to your health. Namely, I want to address the opinions offered by this article from The Daily Beast. In it, the author, a physician still in training as an endocrinology fellow, suggests underlying systemic illness is to blame for health symptoms associated with mold exposure.  She cites one patient with advanced alcoholic liver disease as representative of all patients using mold as an excuse for their illness. She also suggests that mold sickness is a product of internet lore.

Structures in the brain cortex of an Alzheimer’s patient contain fungal protein (Green).

Today, I am linking to an article on TheGuardian.com that was recently published talking about the link between toxic particles in the brain and Alzheimer’s.

From my recent foray into the “mold world,” I have met and know many folks who have experienced, or who know folks who have experienced the brain fog, forgetfulness, confusion, and other negative neurological effects of mold exposure. Thus, it is not too out there to assume that mold exposure could have some long-term degenerative effect on the brain, when the exposure has been prolonged, or the type of mold was toxic and emitting mycotoxins. I have always, always been concerned with inhaling the molds and mycotoxins, and this article really made me think long and hard about that, because of its conclusions.