Mycotoxins and Mold

Show me a home that is free of mold but still contains mycotoxins!

I need to start by saying that mold is a horrible thing. Mycotoxins are even more dangerous. They make people quite sick. In my profession, I've seen it again and time again. I'm not trying to downplay the dangers of mycotoxins. However, it defies logic to believe that harmful mycotoxins may exist in a mold-free environment. I've never encountered a home that was mold-free yet still had mycotoxins. It just does not exist.

Traditional mold remediators, on the other hand, have a "free pass" and a built-in explanation for why their customers are still sick from the mold in their homes because of this concept. The source of the annoyance is that practically every mold expert on the planet would preach that air quality measurements are unreliable when the tests reveal no mold during an investigative investigation. And I wholeheartedly concur with them. Tests of air quality are unreliable. My problem is that these same pundits will look at a standard remediation company's "after" remediation clearance test and conclude, "I can see the mold was cleaned, but you're still sick, so......there must be mycotoxins there." What? Do we suddenly put our faith in mold tests? The industry is letting the cleanup companies off the hook with a single statement and a faulty assumption based on testing that no one believes in.

These same "experts" who say "tread gently when looking at air quality testing" have gone from not trusting initial tests that indicate very little mold in the home to trusting these same types of tests, believing that they are suddenly accurate and the home is mold-free, yet mycotoxins remain. Hopefully, I'll be able to articulate the irony. How can you say you don't trust in air quality tests or any other kind of testing and then base your evaluation of the situation on the tests you don't believe in? And, when confronted with a sick patient or customer, claim that the mold is gone and the mycotoxins are tough "son of a gun" and difficult to eradicate. To make matters worse, residents are being told that they must relocate and leave all of their stuff behind. To put it another way, walk out naked.

Could I suggest a new strategy and solution?

The tests are false, and the house is still infested with mold. Mold pockets exist in every home to some degree, generating spores, developing mold, and producing mycotoxins. And the true mold and mycotoxin problem is often, if not usually, the cumulative effect of these locations, which can number in the hundreds in a single home. When the water heater broke, it wasn't the moist wall that sprouted mold. That moldy, wet wall is just a result of moisture and an already high mold load in the house. Because there were already a lot of spores in the air, it started developing mold on the wetness.

Let's take a look at classic remediation now. At best, it's spot therapy. A typical mold remediator will contain the area, dry it out, rip it out, rebuild it, and then use air scrubbers in the contained area, test it, and finally pronounce the entire house mold-free.

To begin with, mold does not only grow in limited spaces. It was in the entire house before the flood, and it is in the entire house now. The fact that the home swiftly grew mold on the damp, damaged material is just a sign of a high mold load in the house. The entire house is sick, and while the contained region within the containment area may get a little better, the fact is that the entire house is still sick. Mold and mycotoxins cannot be treated on the spot.

The aggravating thing is that following the standard treatment, the consumer reports to their health care provider that their mold has been removed. The healthcare provider will praise them, but the patient will continue to become sicker with each passing day as if nothing has changed. "Here's the true problem," the healthcare provider or mold expert will finally explain, "you got rid of the mold (based on clearance tests, which they now trust), but there are still mycotoxins in the house." What's more, you know what? They're partially correct. This is the real issue. THE CUSTOMER STILL HAS MOLD IN THEIR HOME, SO MYCOTOXINS ARE STILL THERE! It's not because these enigmatic little toxins linger indefinitely. It's because the home's overall mold burden continues to release poisons. Once you've been treated in your house after your home and seen success stories over and over, it's clear as day. The entire house must be addressed. Miniature mycotoxins factories can be found all over the house. They must be turned off. Fresh air will enter the house after it is turned off, and the house will revert to a healthy state. But only after all mold/mycotoxin factories have been closed down.

The key premise here is that moldy dwellings actively manufacture mycotoxins. Furthermore, people become ill as a result of the persistent and unabated release of mycotoxins. Mycotoxins will not be present in a totally mold-free home. Furthermore, mycotoxins or metabolites are sensitive to oxidation, as a side remark. The oxidation principle is used in the Pure Maintenance dry fog system. However, because it is difficult to test, I choose to appeal to a common-sense approach to the issue, at least in this blog. Oxidation will be discussed in future blogs.

A more Typical issue

Let's compare this to a more typical issue that we've worked out how to solve as a culture.

Let's pretend you have a gas leak in both your stove and your furnace. Toxic gas is being released in two separate and independent regions. One is on the second floor, and the other is in the basement. You assume you have toxins in your home because you can smell them; they give you a headache or nausea, or worse, something serious. We've found that the best method to handle this issue is to turn off the natural gas supply to the house. How does one go about doing this? By enlisting the help of a professional and having the leak (or leaks) repaired. Toxins are being stopped. What if, for example, the professional simply repairs the stove's gas leak? (Let's pretend he only patched one because that's the only spot where he could see visual symptoms of gas leakage.) Let's also assume the furnace is still leaking gas into the house.

Let's take it a step further and imagine that the stove repairman seals off the stove area, repairs the leak, installs air scrubbers, tests the area, and then declares the house safe. Is the region where he tested free of toxins? At least for the time being. However, he won't be able to do so until he removes the enclosure.

If a healthcare provider said, "Well, you corrected the leak, but you still have gas in the air," that would be a disgrace. You must either address the gas lingering in the air or relocate because removing natural gas from the air is quite tough. He or she is somewhat true; there is still gas in the air, but it is not due to the "lingering" poisons. It's coming from a different source or sources of gas leakage. The apparent remedy is to address all of the leaks in the house, which is equivalent to repairing or decontaminating all of the mold. The gas will ultimately evaporate, just with mycotoxins. I've never heard of someone having a gas leak in their house and then being told that they must either get rid of the gas that was emitted during the leak or leave. Natural gas is, without a doubt, hazardous to one's health. We also know enough to trust that if all the leaks are repaired, fresh air will triumph. We know that moving air from inside to outside and vice versa will address the problem. The issue here is that the steady flow of toxins must be stopped. The same is true for mold and mycotoxins; the constant "supply" of mycotoxins, as well as the equipment that produces them, must be stopped.

We must cease trusting "post-remediation" tests that claim the mold is gone and instead allow regular remediation businesses to blame the mycotoxins. After standard treatment, the mold is still present in the residence. The dwelling will be safe if the entire house is treated.

For whole-home remediation, contact NoMoldWNC.