I recently shared on social media that I learned that we had had harmful mold in our condo for the last eight years of living there. Ummm…whoops?
There is no doubt that certain molds are toxic and damaging to health–for some more than others!
Now that I have gone through this experience, one of the positive aspects is that I can share what I know and what I have learned in the process so far.
In general, not all mold is bad for health, but in some cases, people can be allergic and more sensitive to many types of mold.
When it comes to toxic mold, you may have heard of “black mold,” but this may be confusing since many molds look black. “Black mold” refers to specific types of mold that release harmful mold toxins into the air that can be inhaled. These are known as mycotoxins.
Harmful “black molds” in the home are usually a result of water damage to the building.
When it comes to water damage, It does not have to be a major flood; it can be something as small as a leak behind your washer or sink that got into the baseboards and then into your home’s drywall, where it really became an issue. This is what happened in our case.
Mold does not feed on things like cement but WILL feed on drywall and continue to grow and spread while it’s wet. Once the leak is repaired and the drywall *eventually* dries out, the toxic mold will continue to release mold spores and mycotoxins into the air until it is properly remediated.
Moral of the message here is that toxic mold can be hiding behind walls and releasing toxins into the home.
Mold can affect everyone’s health differently. It depends on a few things, but it seems like genetics play a big role in how someone reacts to mold (immune system) and how well their body can get rid of mold once exposed (detoxification).
Because of this, people living in the same home with toxic mold can experience different symptoms. Some not experiencing any symptoms for a long time.
So what symptoms and health issues can mold cause?
We commonly think of mold causing symptoms that resemble allergies and involving the upper and lower respiratory system, like the nose, throat, and lungs. This can be itchy eyes, sore throat, stuffy or runny nose, or even cough or chest tightness.
But what is becoming more and more evident is that mold, especially toxic mold, can create a lot of inflammation in the brain in some people.
As a result of toxic mold, people can experience brain fog, chronic fatigue, poor memory and concentration, depression, anxiety, and more.
In the conventional medicine space, toxic mold exposure and illness is taken seriously. But primarily relates it to allergies and breathing issues. There is even a generally accepted that toxic mold can be the cause of developing some respiratory issues like asthma, not just a trigger for it.
On the other hand, functional medicine, which is focused on finding the root causes of conditions, has long identified mold as a culprit for various other issues as well. There are even cases of people who were diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimers being treated for toxic mold and experiencing a dramatic improvement in their symptoms.
More research needs to be done on mold and its effects on health and a lot of the information out there is not considered clinical evidence-based practice.
Currently, for people dealing with a mold illness, functional medicine may be a necessary route when it comes to treatment.
If you are curious to explore more topics on mold and health here are some suggested searches: Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS), Mold and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), Mold and Chronic Lyme, Biotoxin Illness, Mold Illness, Mold and Brain Inflammation, Richard Shoemaker MD and Mold.
There are mixed opinions on whether or not testing for mold is needed after mold exposure. Some doctors believe it’s most important to test the home and then treat the person based on exposure and symptoms.
In my case, the whole reason behind why we had professional mold testing done in our home was because I tested positive for high levels of toxic mold in my lab work.
I wanted to get tested for all sorts of toxins after I started going to the sauna and noticed that I would feel sick from it. This was a major red flag that I had high toxicity of something.
I used the VibrantWellness Mycotoxin urine test, which is one of the best mold tests on the market. It tests for 31 different types of molds and needs to be ordered by a provider.
Stachybotrys chartarum and aspergillus niger are two of the most harmful black molds, and here they are in my body. More on treatment in another section.
In general, the standard for mold testing in the US is to do a mold air test.
Unfortunately, these tests are flawed and not always accurate. Meaning you could have a toxic mold problem in your home and receive a negative test result saying that you don’t.
To help figure out the mold situation in our home after receiving my lab results, we hired a Certified Indoor Environmentalist (CIE).
If you are looking for someone to come and inspect your home, you want to look for an indoor environmental professional that holds CIE or CIEC credentials.
Our CIE used seven different devices to inspect our home. Based on his assessment, he already had an idea that there was a mold issue in our home, and where it was.
The most important and definitive tests that he did were ERMI and HERTSMI-2 tests. He collected samples from our home to identify the types of molds and how much of those molds were present in our home. These tests were created by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Our ERMI and HERTSMI-2 test results came back consistent with what showed up on my lab work and it was confirmed that we had a toxic mold in our home and immediate remediation was recommended. A mix of all sorts of feelings when received this news, for sure!
The great thing about the ERMI/HERTSMI-2 tests is that they can be ordered by anyone and done at home. The price is also reasonable, being $370 for both.
Dealing with mold in the home is tricky and hiring a professional to guide us through the whole process made a challenging experience much smoother.
Although the ERMI/HERTSMI-2 mold tests can be ordered by anyone, they were created to be collected and interpreted by professionals. I can imagine getting a positive toxic mold test but having no idea where in your home it is coming from would be very confusing.
The same thing applies to fixing the mold issue. Our CIE wrote out a mold remediation protocol with the highest of standards. Every remediation company that came out to assess our condo said that they would have to follow all the exact procedures in the protocol.
Another great thing about hiring a professional like a CIE is they focus on the home being a healthy place to live. They are very familiar with the relationship between mold and health issues and the fact that some people are much more sensitive than others.
We also received a decontamination protocol that instructed us on how to clean each item in our home. Our CIE also mentioned that in some cases where mold damage is extensive, he will recommend someone who is mold sensitive to move to a new home despite remediating.
The short answer is that it depends!
I think it is best to speak for myself here. We have had this toxic mold in our home for eight years, and I started to have health issues six years ago. You can read more about my health story here. How much of what I was dealing with is related to mold is kind of hard to say.
I do know that traveling and being gone from home for 2-3 months at a time in the last year shed light on how I felt different being out of my moldy environment—another red flag.
The number one step in the treatment for me will be getting out of the moldy environment and being mindful of my environment moving forward. I am what they call “mold sensitive.” It also seems that it is more challenging for my body to get rid of mold properly.
I do have signs and symptoms of inflammation in my brain and will be going for a special MRI called NeuroQuant to take a better look at my brain, weirdly I find this interesting and kind of exciting. My doctor started me on both supplements and medications to help with brain inflammation in addition to helping my body detox better.
The last step in all of this will be taking herbal and prescription mold binders and going to the sauna to get rid of the mold. This is the step that I can start once I am out of the moldy environment.
Once I am done with the treatment protocol in 3-6 months, maybe I will write another blog post all about it. Wish me luck!
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Disclaimer: This blog post is not intended to diagnose, treat or give out medical advice. It is meant for informational purposes only. Please see the “Terms” section of this website for further information.
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