Besides accidentally eating moldy bread or another spoiled food, there are a number of other ways you could get a mold illness such as by eating GMOs sprayed with the Roundup chemical.
Related: How to Kill Fungal Infections
Glyphosate is alleged to increase the size of colonies of the fungus Fusarium according to New Scientist.
In the year 2000, the U.S. Congress planned to use the fungus Fusarium as a biological control agent to kill coca crops in Colombia and another fungus to kill opium in Afghanistan, but these plans were dropped by then-president Clinton.
According to David Ellis’ 2002 article in the Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, “there are at least 70,000 to possibly 1,500,000 fungal species but only 300 species have been associated with human infections. Only about a dozen yeasts and 30 molds are identified most commonly as human pathogens in scientific studies(7),” Healthy Family reported.
Mold can also circulate in the air you breathe through your air conditioner if you neglect to change your HVAC filters. Mold produces toxic chemicals called mycotoxins, present on spores and fragments of mold released into the air.
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Mold also grows in damp, warm, and humid locations throughout your home; scientists have identified more than 1,000 types of mold growing inside houses across America, according to Mercola.
For example — in between your tiles, under your shower head, in your pipes, bathroom, basement and attic. Mold can even attach itself to your shoes, pets, clothes, carpets, furniture, books, and papers.
Since there are so many types of mold, there is no real way to tell what is harmful and what isn’t without being put under a microscope so it’s best to avoid contact and leave it to a professional.
According to Mold-Help.org:
Most people are not aware that harmful molds come in a variety of colors — they can be white, or orange, or blue, for instance. The color of a mold generally has to do with the spores it produces, and has no bearing on whether it is dangerous or not. There are some white molds that grow on walls and other surfaces that can be just as bad as the harmful black molds.
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Molds are classified into three groups according to human responses:
- Allergenic Molds: These don’t usually produce life-threatening effects and are most problematic if you are allergic or asthmatic. The challenge is in figuring out what you are sensitive to. Children are particularly susceptible to mold allergies.
- Pathogenic Molds: These produce some sort of infection, which is of particular concern if your immune system is suppressed. They can cause hypersensitivity pneumonitis, an acute response resembling bacterial pneumonia. An example is Aspergillus fumigatus, which can grow in the lungs of immune-compromised individuals.
- Toxigenic Molds (aka “toxic molds”): These dangerous molds produce mycotoxins, which can have serious health effects on almost anyone. Possible reactions include immunosuppression and cancer. Mycotoxins are chemical toxins present within or on the surface of the mold spore, which you then unwittingly inhale, ingest, or touch. An example of this is aflatoxin, one of the most potent carcinogens known to mankind. Aflatoxin grows on peanuts and grains, and on some other foods.
Mold toxicity is classified under the larger category as a biotoxin illness, also known as Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS.)
Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS) is defined as “an acute and chronic, systemic inflammatory response acquired following exposure to the interior environment of a water-damaged building with resident toxigenic organisms, including, but not limited to fungi, bacteria, actinomycetes, and mycobacterium as well as inflammagens,” according to doctor Ritchie Shoemaker, MD author of Surviving Mold: Life in the Era of Dangerous Buildings and 7 other books on mold.
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As Dr. Shoemaker explains, 24% of people on the planet are genetically vulnerable to mold poisoning who posses the Human Leukocyte Antigen — antigen D Related (HLA-DR) gene.
People who are susceptible to mold who lack the genes have higher chances to have an adverse reaction to mold, upon exposure to sufficient amounts, because their body is not able to make an adequate antibody response.
Below is a list of symptoms associated with mold illness:
- Memory problems, brain fog, trouble with focus and executive function
- Fatigue, weakness, post-exercise malaise and fatigue
- Muscle cramping, aches and pains, joint pain without inflammatory arthritis, persistent nerve pain, “ice pick” pain
- Numbness and tingling
- Headache
- Light sensitivity, red eyes, and/or blurred vision
- Sinus problems, cough, shortness of breath, air hunger, asthma-like symptoms
- Tremors
- Vertigo
- Persistent nerve pain
- Abdominal pain, nausea, diarrhea, appetite changes
- Metallic taste
- Weight gain despite sufficient effort (weight loss resistance)
- Night sweats or other problems with temperature regulation
- Excessive thirst
- Increased urination
- Static “shocks”
These symptoms, since they are so common, are often confused with symptoms of other diseases.
If you suspect you have mold illness or have mold in your home, here’s what you should do…
WARNING: DO NOT CLEAN MOLD.
- Determine where you are in contact with mold … are others sick around you?
- Test your home for mold. One of the best tests is called an ERMI, including MMP–9, TGF beta 1, MSH, VEGF, and others but I suggest that you hire an environmental professional to perform a visual inspection of your home and sample several rooms. You can perform an ERMI on your own at a lower price (about $325) but it’s only helpful if it’s positive, in which case you’ll need to hire an environmental professional.
- Take a urine test for actual mold toxins circulating in the body to determine if you are contaminated with mold.
- Change your eating habits. Fungi will thrive on a diet high in fructose, sucrose (table sugar), lactose (milk sugar) and other sugars.
- Work with a clinician trained in Shoemaker’s Protocol. Click here for more information on how to find one. You may consider the genetic susceptibility test for mold, which can be performed by Labcorp, panel # 167120.
Here are a few tips that Mercola offered to incorporate into your recovery plan:
•Glutathione is mentioned by Kurt and Lee Ann Billings as being helpful. Glutathione is your body’s most powerful antioxidant and has even been called the “master antioxidant” because it maximizes the activity of all the other antioxidants. The best way to increase your glutathione level is by consuming a high-quality whey protein. It should be cold pressed, undenatured, derived from grass-fed cows, and free of hormones, chemicals and sugar.
•Omega-3 fats are also very important, from a mixture of plant and animal sources. The best source of animal-based omega-3s comes from krill oil.
•Artichoke leaf extract: A study published in the Journal of Agricultural Food Chemistry in 2004[4] found that extract of artichoke leaf was toxic to many types of fungi, including both molds and yeasts.
•Vitamin D: Research suggests vitamin D may prevent mold allergies, so make sure your vitamin D levels are optimal.
•Air purification: To ensure you are breathing the cleanest air possible, I recommend you avail yourself of an air purification system. Air can contain mold and mold spores, among other toxic particles. My favorites are active purification systems that utilize low levels of ozone.
•Provocation neutralization: This is a little-known treatment strategy that Dr. Doris Rapp describes as “one of the best hidden secrets.” Provocation neutralization (PN) offers allergy sufferers permanent relief with virtually no side effects, whether the allergy is to mold or something else. The success rate for this approach is about 80 to 90 percent for allergies, and you can receive the treatment at home. It is certainly worth a try if your sensitivity is related to mold.
- Provocation refers to “provoking a change” and neutralization refers to “neutralizing the reaction caused by provocation.” During provocation neutralization, a small amount of allergen is injected under your skin to produce a small bump called a “wheal” and then monitored for a reaction. If you have a positive reaction, such as fatigue or headache, or a growth in the size of the wheal, then the allergen is neutralized with diluted injections (drops that go in your mouth) of the same allergen.
The video below describes how to detoxify mold from your body: