How Is It Diagnosed
Currently, the only way to definitively diagnose SIFO is to collect a sample of fluid from your small intestine. This is known as a small bowel aspirate.
In order to collect the sample, an instrument, called an endoscope, is passed through your esophagus and stomach and into your small intestine. A sample of fluid is collected and then sent to a laboratory for testing.
At the laboratory, the sample is tested for the presence of fungi. If fungal growth is found in the sample, the species of fungus as well as its sensitivity to antifungal drugs can be determined.
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What About Food Thats Moldy On Purpose
Not all molds are out to get us. We can be friends with some of them, especially the ones that make tasty foods for us.
Cheese is the obvious example. But if youve been shying away from types like blue cheese, Gorgonzola, and Camembert, theres no need. Cheesemakers use strains of mold that cant produce mycotoxins, so those cheeses are completely safe to eat.
The same goes for other foods and drinks that use molds, such as vinegar and Japanese sake.
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How Can You Keep Food From Getting Moldy
Two words: proper storage.
Mold loves humidity and warmth, but it can grow in virtually any environment. It can tolerate colder temps too, so refrigerated items are just as much at risk as those kept at room temperature. When the spores dry, they “float through the air and find suitable conditions where they can start the growth cycle again, according to the USDA. To prevent this, the USDA recommends that you keep food covered when serving, refrigerate any perishables promptly, avoid leaving food out for more than two hours, and keep both the refrigerator and pantry clean.
When you’re grocery shopping, take care to examine your food before buying and avoid any bruised produce. Although bruised fruit doesn’t always mean it’s moldy, bruising is a breakdown in the cellular makeup of the fruit and does indicate some sort of damage, which can be an opportunity for mold to grow. It’s also helpful to purchase food in smaller quantities, so you’re more likely to eat it before anything grows and you’re forced to waste leftovers.
The bottom line? Mold is ever-present in our world and can even be beneficial to some foods , and if you accidentally eat mold, you’ll probably be fine. But, when in doubt, play it safe and just toss the food.
Can We Eat Moldy Bread
The most common notion you would have heard about moldy food is to avoid it strictly since eating mold is dangerous, and may cause a variety of problems.
However, what if we told you that it was okay to have some moldy foods? In fact, some foods are processed with mold as an essential ingredient. Blue cheese, for instance, is made from a type of mold that is safe to consume.
Other food and beverage items that include mold as an ingredient are:
- Alcoholic beverages
- Stilton cheese
But if you are allergic to molds or have a yeast infection eating such foods may not be good for you.
The extent of mold growth is different in salvageable and non-salvageable foods. Salvageable foods are those through which mold cannot easily penetrate. Such food items are edible after cutting out the mold-infected part.
Such foods include vegetables like cabbage and bell peppers, and other items like hard salami, hard cheese, and dry-cured country ham.
Non-salvageable foods, on the contrary, are foods which have more moisture, and hence are softer and easy to penetrate.
Food items such as bacon, yogurt, grains/pasta, jelly, etc. should be discarded immediately if you see mold growing on them.
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What Is Pink Mold
Pink mold is not actually a mold, but a bacterial growth commonly found in damp areas of the home like the bathroom and kitchen. The two common types are Aureobasidium and Fusarium. These bacterial colonies can grow on many surfaces and locations which we will go into more depth later.
Other types of fungus that appear in pink color:
Just because its not technically a mold, does not mean you can just wipe it away and its gone. It acts very similar to a mold colony and will return if not remediated properly. It also poses many health risks that mimic various types of molds as well. These are just a few reasons why its classified as a mold.
Mold May Cause Allergic Reactions
Some people have a respiratory allergy to molds, and consuming moldy food might cause these people to have an allergic reaction.
Not much research exists on this topic, but there have been several case studies.
In a small number of cases, people who are allergic to mold have reported allergic symptoms after they ate Quorn. Quorn is a food product made from mycoproteins, or fungal proteins, that are derived from the mold Fusarium venenatum .
Despite these incidents, there is no need for healthy individuals to avoid Quorn.
In another case study, a patient who was very sensitive to molds experienced a serious allergic reaction after ingesting a bee pollen supplement that was contaminated with the molds Alternaria and Cladosporium .
In another case, a teenager allergic to mold died after consuming pancake mix that was heavily contaminated with mold .
People who are not sensitive or allergic to mold are probably not affected if they accidentally ingest a small amount of it.
One study found that individuals who were not sensitive to mold experienced fewer symptoms than those who were sensitive to mold after they ingested a mixed mold extract preparation. However, not many studies exist on this topic, so more research is needed .
Summary:People with respiratory allergies to mold may experience an allergic reaction after ingesting mold. More research on this topic is needed.
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It Can Lead To Leaky Gut
The intestinal epitheliumtightly packed epithelial cells that line the walls of your intestinesacts as a barrier to block the entry of pathogens, toxins, and foreign antigens into the bloodstream. Trichothecenes, fumonisins, and aflatoxins interfere with a protein that links epithelial cells together, weakening this barrier they also decrease gut-protective mucin production and lower IL-8, a cytokine that assists with pathogen removal. These effects increase intestinal permeability, causing leaky gut and rendering the gut vulnerable to infection.
Mycotoxin Affect On The Gut
The mycoxtin affect on the gut and digestion is tremendous. Spores from mold as well as mycotoxins can be inhaled from the environment or ingested with food. Additionally, when inhaled many of them are cleared out of the respiratory system and end up moving down the esophagus and into the digestive tract.
Mycotoxins can cause digestive irritation and inflammation as well as harm our good microflora. This leads to dysbiosis, a leaky gut and a whole host of systemic symptoms.
Sometimes we can see that a building has fungal growth. However, fungus is not always visible on food or in a building, and mycotoxins are always too small to see.
Most of the mycotoxin exposure comes from water-damaged buildings, but all of us need to be aware that food can also contain mold and mycotoxins. Mold and mycotoxins are not regulated very well, and in reality due to the complexity of identifying all myctotoxins, and the metabolites of those mycotoxins in food , I don’t know how well it can be regulated in food.
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How Dirty Carpets Affect Your Health
In 1980, the World Health Organization coined the term Sick Building Syndrome to refer to the unhealthy environmental factors in the workplace that undoubtedly affect the health of employees.
According to Dr. Berry Michael, Deputy Director of the Environmental Criteria and Assessment Office, soiled and filthy carpets are one of the main perpetrators of SBS, contributing to indoor air pollution and threatening the health of workers.
Rugs and carpets trap allergens and are home to microorganisms that can release harmful fumes into the air you breathe. They accumulate bacteria colonies, chemical irritants, and microorganisms like mold that can cause both short-term and long-term health effects.
Once these pathogens are inhaled, they can lead to the development of the following health issues:
How To Prevent Pink Mold From Growing
As mentioned earlier, preventing mold with pink color is very similar to preventing any type of mold from growing. Keeping trouble areas clean, dry, and free from food sources is essential in keeping mold from growing. After showering or bathing dry all surfaces and clean the shower curtain or glass with an after-shower spray. This works great in preventing mold from growing.
In the kitchen, keep all food in sealed containers and covered. Also regularly keep the seals around the dishwasher clean and once a month run a cleaning cycle with an approved dishwasher interior cleaner as that will go a long way in keeping pink mold from growing in the kitchen.
In the basement and laundry rooms, keep clutter, clothing and other items off the floor. Keeping the basement area clean is essential for preventing mold growth. Making sure the sump system is working properly and pumping to the exterior of the home is critical to keep moisture down in the basement as well.
If you have any doubts, contact a Mold Busters professional and they will give your home a full inspection and provide any recommendations that may be needed to correct for proper mold prevention.
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Mold Toxicity Symptoms In Humans
Some of the most common symptoms of mold toxicity in humans include headaches, fatigue, cognitive difficulties, skin rashes and irritations, and respiratory problems. Mold toxicity occurs when a person is exposed to mold spores or toxins produced by mold. Mold exposure can happen through inhalation, skin contact, or ingestion. Once the mold spores or toxins enter the body, they can start to cause health problems. Symptoms of mold toxicity depend on the type of mold and the persons individual susceptibility but can range from mild to severe.
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Our highly-trained, certifiedmold removalprofessionals follow a proven, step-by-step process to make your home or business safe again.
First, we visually inspect the area to find any potential mold, tracing it to the source if possible. Then, our team contains the affected area and removes moldy, non-salvageable, porous material and implements negative air pressure technology to keep harmful mold spores from traveling from the air to your lungs.
Next, we utilize advanced HEPA filtered vacuums to help eliminate mold on non-porous surfaces, then set up air scrubbers with HEPA filters.
Finally, we ULV fog with a powerful antimicrobial solution to ensure that we treat the deepest, darkest corners of your home then, we clean and sanitize the remaining salvageable contents as necessary.
The moment you notice mold, you must act. Even a small amount of mold in the home can multiply quickly, and its entirely possible that there is more existing mold than what meets the eye.
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Why Foods Develop Mold
Mold develops on food when the conditions are right. Were talking about transient mold thats in the air that might be spreading from the environment into food, or just because of the age of the product or poor storage, says Dr. Craggs-Dino.
This bad mold grows on a wide variety of foods, including fruits and vegetables bread lunch meat jams and jellies sauces and condiments and dairy products such as yogurt and cheese. A mold is microscopic fungus, says Dr. Craggs-Dino. And then what we see growing on things like fruits, vegetables and jelly are the spores.
These spores are airborne and circulate in the environment, looking for a hospitable landing place. Once spores find a suitable food host, they start to grow. Tell-tale signs of mold include white spots, unusual colored patches, or food thats softer than normal or smells bad.
But while its tempting to scrape off the offensive fuzz and eat the food anyway, that might not be the best course of action. Theres no way of knowing by sight whether a mold is safe or harmful. You dont know what mold you actually might be eating, Dr. Craggs-Dino says. Some molds can actually be very, very toxic to human beings. They can also cause allergic reactions and respiratory problems.
Dr. Craggs-Dino adds that some molds can also create a dangerous substance called toxins including aflatoxins, which can be especially poisonous. Those are extremely dangerous to somebodys health. They can actually cause death.
You Can Clean Your Carpets Yourselfall You Need Is A Steam Cleaner
While the right equipment is necessary to do the job effectively, it is not the only thing you need. The best companies have both the right equipment and the experts to clean your carpeting properly.
Carpet cleaning professionals are specifically trained and have years of experience cleaning carpets. They know things that the average homeowner does not, from which steam cleaner to use to which carpet shampoo to apply based on the type of carpet you have and how soiled it is.
So if youre tempted to rent a steam cleaner and attempt a DIY carpet cleaning project, dont. Theres a reason why professional carpet-cleaning companies exist.
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Help Prevent Respiratory Conditions From Mold Exposure
There are a few things you can do to help prevent respiratory conditions from mold exposure. One is to avoid exposure to moldy environments as much as possible. If you must enter a moldy environment, wear protective clothing, including a dust mask or respirator. Another is to keep your indoor environment as clean and dry as possible since mold thrives in moist environments. Finally, if you have respiratory conditions that make you more susceptible to mold exposure, be sure to consult with your doctor and follow their recommendations for avoiding or minimizing exposure.
What Happens If You Accidentally Eat Black Mold
If you eat black mold accidentally, then you will most likely get sick. Keep in mind that some people are more susceptible to getting sick from eating mold than others.
For instance, if you have a weak immune system or other health problems, then youll be more likely to get sick from eating black mold. Thats because your immune system has lost some of its ability to fight off the toxins produced by the mold.
Its important to seek medical attention immediately after accidentally eating black mold . If youre not sure you have eaten black mold, you should see a doctor as soon as possible as well.
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Can Mold Cause Diarrhea
Again, the answer to this question is definitely yes. Some symptoms of mold exposure include vomiting, cramping, nausea, intestinal bleeding, and internal bacterial infections. Most of the time, individuals are exposed to mold in their own homes and do not realize it. By the time these symptoms appear, it is often too late.
Where Are These Bad Molds Found
Bad molds that can produce mycotoxins are commonly found in soil, on dead plants, cellulose-rich materials, insulation or fabric, water-damaged carpets, humidifiers and also in grain, to name a few places. The problem arises when they have the right environment to multiply to the point where the air you breathe becomes saturated with the toxins they produce.
Certain molds may not pose a danger unless they are allowed to colonize in a confined environment such as a house or garage or other enclosed area. Damp, moist areas that lack airflow offer the best conditions for mold growth, but mold can and does grow everywhere.
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How Do I Prevent Carpet Mold
Many of us love decorating our homes with colourful carpets and rugs. Unfortunately, we often overlook the potential danger of carpet mold. Wall-to-wall carpeting and area rugs, in particular, are at high risk. The best way to eliminate a carpet mold problem is to call a professional mold removal company, such as the certified team of technicians at Mold Busters. Moreover, there are ways you can prevent carpet mold from developing in the first place.
If You Suspect Mold In Your Home Its Important To Do A Mold Test
If you suspect you may have mold in your home, its very easy to test for it. There are several tests available on the market. One of the easiest and most convenient is The 5-Minute Mold Test from Healthful Home Products. This test includes a few simple tools to gather mold samples and conduct the test, then get results in less than 5 minutes.
This 5-Minute Mold Test tells you if mold is present and also indicates the presence one of the dangerous mold, Stachybotrys.
To protect your family from the dangers of mold, be aware of any places in the home that may be damp and moist. Healthful Home Products offers several treatment products for mold and bacteria, should they be a threat around the home. For more information, visit www.healthfulhome.com.
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