Is ‘toxic mold syndrome’ real? What do we do about toxic food contamination from mold?
There has been mold in recent years accused for all sorts of “vague and subjective” symptoms, but we have little scientific evidence that mold must be involved. However, this “toxic mold syndrome concept has permeated the public consciousness,” perpetuated by unscrupulous predatory practices by those who make money testing homes for mold spores or testing people’s urine or blood. But all of these tests are said to “spread further misinformation and impose unnecessary and often exorbitant costs on patients who are desperate for a clinical diagnosis, right or wrong, of their constellation of illnesses… Continued belief in this myth is perpetuated by those charlatans who believe that measles vaccines must cause autism, that homeopathic disease works…”.
However, food contamination by mold toxins has arose as a legitimate issue of serious concern and mycotoxins hectare perhaps even more important than other contaminants that could enter the food supply. There have been hundreds of different types identifiedbut there was only one classified as a known human carcinogen, and that is aflatoxin. The ochratoxin I had in the past was discussed is a possible carcinogenic to humans, but we know Aflatoxin causes cancer in humans. Actually, aflatoxins hectare of the most potent known carcinogens.
It has been done is appreciated that about one-fifth of all liver cancer cases can be attributed to aflatoxins. “Given that liver cancer is the third leading cause of cancer death worldwide and mortality rapidly follows diagnosis, the contribution of aflatoxins to this deadly cancer is significant.” And once aflatoxin does gets into the food, there is almost nothing we can do to remove it. Cooking, for example, does not help. Indeed, as shown below and at 1:50 in my video Should we be worried about aflatoxin?once does it’s too late So we need to prevent infection in the first place, which we have been doing for decades in the United States. Because of government regulations, “companies in developed countries are “always sampling“for aflatoxin” arise to nearly $1 billion in losses each year. This can take even worse if climate change exacerbates aflatoxin contamination in the Midwest Corn Belt.
So, at the consumer level, it is it is more of a public health problem in the less industrialized world, such as in African countries, where conditions are ripe and farmers cannot afford to throw away $1 billion on contaminated crops. Aflatoxin remains public health threat in Africa, Southeast Asia and rural China; moving more than half of humanity. This explains why the prevalence of liver cancer in these areas can be 30 times higher, yet it is not a major problem in the United States or Europe.
Only about 1% of Americans have detectable levels of aflatoxins in their blood. Why not 0%? The US Food and Drug Administration works to ensure that exposure levels to these toxins are kept as low as practical and not as low as possible. In California, for example, there is it was increase in “unacceptable levels of aflatoxin” in peanuts, almonds and figs. Unacceptable in Europe, that is, it affects our ability to export, but not necessarily unacceptable for US consumers, as we allow twice as much aflatoxin contamination.
figs hectare unique since they are “allowed to fully ripen and dry on the tree”. This does are “particularly susceptible to aflatoxin production”. It would be interesting to learn about the fig eating habits of the 1% of Americans who tested positive for the toxin. If figs were to blame, I would encourage people to diversify their dried fruit intake, but nuts hectare so good for us that we really want to keep them in our diet. The cardiovascular health benefits of nuts outweigh their carcinogenic effects. Eating nuts prevents thousands of strokes and heart attacks for every one case of liver cancer. “Thus, the population health benefits provided by increased nut consumption clearly outweigh the risks associated with increased exposure to aflatoxin B1.”
So, we are left with aflatoxin existence mostly a problem in the developing world and, because of this, “remains a largely and rather shamefully ignored global health issue…”. Where attention has been paid, it is largely due to the need to enforce strict import regulations for mycotoxin contamination in the world’s wealthiest nations, rather than to protect the billions of people who are exposed on a daily basis.
Doctor’s note
This is the final video in a four-part series on mold toxins. If you missed the others, check out the related posts below.
