Mold toxicity is a significant trigger for Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS). If you are experiencing unexplained illness, it’s wise to investigate mold as a potential cause. According to MCAS practitioner Beth O’Hara, mold toxicity is the most common mast cell trigger she sees, stating, “Mold Toxicity is the #1 Mast Cell Trigger.” This post covers the hidden dangers of mold toxicity and MCAS.
As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Mold is a common fungus that grows in places with a lot of moisture, such as roofs, pipes, and under wood and tile floors and ceilings. Different types of mold are around us all the time, but some are more dangerous than others and certain people are allergic to mold or sensitive to the naturally occurring toxins, called mycotoxins, that mold can emit. When you’re exposed to too much mold, mold that you’re sensitive to, or certain types of mold known to cause health issues, it can lead to a condition called mold toxicity.
– sourcehttps://www.parsleyhealth.com/blog/mold-toxicity-symptoms/
Table of Contents
Who is Betsy Leighton?
I’m a writer, blogger, and healer dedicated to helping individuals reconnect with their innate peace and wholeness by healing nervous system dysregulation. My personal experience with chronic illness called Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS) shapes my work, and my content offers tools to empower those with chronic illness to improve their well-being and take charge of their health.
I created the Sacred Self-Healing Method and am a trained and certified Safe and Sound Protocol provider, an author, blogger, and A Course in Miracles Teacher. I hold a Master of Divinity in Spiritual Counseling and am a trained spiritual mentor, with certificates in sound healing, aromatherapy, nutrition, and Sacred Deathcare. I offer a self-study certificate program in the Sacred Self-Healing Method, provide spiritual counseling and coaching, courses, and supported subscriptions for the Safe and Sound Protocol.
What is MCAS?
Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS) is a chronic condition that affects all organ systems. It can cause severe, disabling symptoms every day, including potentially fatal anaphylaxis. MCAS often occurs with other chronic conditions like Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) and Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS). Managing MCAS is challenging because many healthcare providers are unaware of it, and diagnostic tests can be unreliable. Treatments include antihistamines and mast cell stabilizers, as well as avoiding triggers. Check out this post on managing MCAS.
Assessing your environment for mold
If mold is suspected in the home, you want to have it promptly evaluated and remediated by trained professionals. But cleanup needs to be undertaken very thoughtfully. Cleaning up mold with bleach can cause more problems because it mainly contains water. After the bleach evaporates, you are left with water to culture more mold, while the bleach itself potentiates mycotoxins.
If you suspect you have mold illness, the first step is to test your home and work environments for mold. It is impossible to recover your health if you continue to expose yourself to a water-damaged, mold-filled environment. Hire a reputable mold inspection company and have them do an ERMI (Environmental Relative Moldiness Index) test in your home. This test uses mold-specific quantitative polymerase chain reaction (MSqPCR) to identify and quantify molds in indoor environments from samples of settled house dust. Some people choose to use another test called HERTSMI, but this test only looks at 5 molds, whereas ERMI looks at 36 molds. HERTSMI is more frequently used to determine if a building is safe for reentry after mold remediation. This helpful article provides a comprehensive list of questions to ask a mold inspector before booking an appointment, to make sure he or she is qualified for the job. – The Pratt Clinics
Testing your home
Unfortunately, there aren’t national standards for mold testing and remediation, so you will likely encounter conflicting information on how to handle mold in the home. In Minnesota, I highly recommend Green Home Solutions for remediating mold in a home or office environment. Look for companies that don’t use chlorine bleach, which can cause dying mold spores to release mycotoxins into your living spaces.
Remediation
When we faced mold in our home, we tried several times to identify the source and did some remediation ourselves. When that still didn’t address our family’s spiraling health issues, we decided to move to a new home, and we discarded most of our porous belongings.
Green Home Solutions recommends the least invasive way to treat moldy areas. This means safe containment of the air, air scrubbing with HEPA technology, and less-intrusive removal (removing only the affected materials). That way, you are less likely to spread mold spores throughout the space.
After the space is remediated, treat your belongings to prevent recontamination of the cleaned area.
Green Home Solutions disinfected the porous materials we kept, such as photos, family keepsakes, and essential clothing, with Halosil. This hospital-grade disinfection system kills mold spores without allowing them to spread further. They also offer other products for disinfecting hard surfaces, as well as a proprietary probiotic mist to apply after treatment to help prevent the growth of unhealthy microbes.
Urine testing
Once the home is clear of mold, you will want to start on a protocol to detox mold and mycotoxins from your body. If you want to test your body to determine mold load, mycotoxin testing can help you identify which species to target in your treatment.
The bucket theory
The bucket theory simplifies understanding symptom reactions with MCAS. Imagine your body as an empty bucket you don’t want to overflow. Reactions to various stimuli fill the histamine bucket at different rates, forming the total histamine level (how full your bucket is). More histamine means more symptoms. By managing triggers, reducing exposures, and taking medications and supplements, you can control your bucket’s level.
Know your typical symptom progression
Understanding your symptom progression during a flare is key to developing your rescue plan. This post discusses how to recognize symptom progression so you can be prepared to address them.
Get my free ebook, symptom log, and meal plan!
Want a tool to easily track your symptoms?
Antifungals
Starting on antifungals such as Itraconazole or Fluconazole will begin to address the mold colonization in your body. As mold spores die, they produce toxins such as mycotoxins and aflatoxins that can cause further problems in the body. So you will also want to have binders on board to mop up the metabolites of mold treatment. You should work with a functional practitioner who can evaluate which issues are most prominent and will adjust your treatment as you heal.
Homeopathy for mold toxicity
My favorite homeopathic remedy for MCAS is Energetix. Energetix homeopathic products are prepared according to the HPUS (Homeopathic Pharmacopeia of the United States) and formulated to address a wide range of modern concerns effectively. The pleasant-tasting liquid form of Energetix remedies is easy to dose and use.
Energetix makes three types of homeopathic remedies: Paths, Tones, and Chords.
- Paths – Product names ending in “Path” are for symptoms related to weakness or imbalance in systems, organs, glands, or tissues.
- Tones – Product names ending in “Tone” are for symptoms related to congestion or stress in systems, organs, glands, or tissues.
- Chords – Product names ending in “Chord” are for symptoms related to systems, organs, glands, or tissues that are compromised or overburdened by toxins.
With Energetix remedies, you are best off combining a Chord with a Tone; the Chord addresses toxicity in the body, while the Tone provides drainage support to excrete the toxins. Paths can be taken without the support of a Tone.
Here is my list of go-to Energetix Remedies for mold detoxification.
Calm Five – is helpful for trauma
Relax Tone is one of my favorite supports for restlessness and sleep
Relief Tone helps address injuries and trauma
Isopathic Phenolic Rings supports those with multiple sensitivities
MycoCan-Chord is for symptoms of Candida mold toxicity
Para-Chord is for addressing parasites
Viru-Chord helps clear viral infections such as EBV
Neuro-Chord is helpful for neurotoxins
Hepata-Chord pairs with Hepatic-Tone, and is for general liver toxicity
Tox-Chord is for chemical toxicity
Drainage Tone supports detox pathways
Lymph-Tone II assists with detoxing chronic issues
Lymph-Tone III is helpful in detoxing issues due to hypersensitivities and neuropathy
Hypothamalapath – assists with neuropathy, concussion, brain fog, sleep, and hot flashes.
Metabopath supports the Krebs cycle and aids metabolism
BioCatalin Lotion – is for joint and muscle pain and sciatica
MycoDerm – is an ointment for rashes and skin conditions
PhytoGel – is an aloe-based arnica gel
It is important to pair Chords with Tones, so if you would like help choosing remedies for your specific situation, please schedule a session with me for individualized support. Click here to schedule a session.
Using binders for mold toxicity
Binders are an important part of clearing a mold problem from your body. As you kill fungus in your body, you want to be able to effectively excrete the byproducts. Some examples of binders are activated charcoal, modified citrus pectin, chlorella, and others. Work with a functional practitioner to determine the best treatment strategy for your situation.
Detoxing
Finally, you will want to open your detox pathways with measures such as daily Epsom salt soaks, lemon water, and sweating.
Frequency for mold detoxing
Frequency is also a powerful tool for addressing mold toxicity. I regularly use a custom Healy program for mold toxicity.
Check out these circadian health tools!
I’m an affiliate with Bon Charge, a company that makes tools for circadian health, and you can receive 15% off your order with my coupon code BETSYL.
Bon Charge offers tools such as yellow– and red-tone blue-blocking glasses, red light therapy devices, PEMF mats, infrared saunas, and EMF-blocking products.
Sign up for the SSP!
I’ve found the Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) to be the most helpful bottom-up healing strategy if your nervous system has been overloaded with toxic exposures, including mold or non-native EMFs, chronic infections, concussions, stress, or trauma. The SSP is a passive listening therapy based on Polyvagal Theory that helps heal nervous system dysregulation. Many people with MCAS and other chronic conditions have nervous system dysregulation stemming from infections, toxic exposures, concussions, and trauma. The SSP is an easy-to-use app that lets you listen to specially filtered music for 30 minutes each day as part of a 5-hour cycle. Studies show the SSP has a profound effect on mental health and chronic conditions. Here’s a short podcast describing the Safe and Sound Protocol.
You can sign up for the SSP here!
Heal your mind!
While the SSP is a bottom-up, somatic therapy for healing the nervous system, the Sacred Self-Healing Method I offer is a top-down nervous system-healing modality that focuses on cognition, attention, perception, and emotion, using the mind’s higher functions. The SSP and the Sacred Self-Healing Method complement each other and together produce lasting results. Here’s a short podcast on my self-healing practice.
I provide one-on-one in-person and remote chronic illness and caregiver coaching, as well as Sacred Self-Healing Sessions based on the Sacred Self-Healing Method, a proven, novel co-creative healing modality detailed in my Books.
Order my books!
Here’s a short podcast highlighting my five books.
My latest book, Living In The Light: Healing with Forgiveness, Sound, and Light, is all about the tools that have been most helpful for me to heal: forgiveness, sound, through nervous system retraining using the Safe and Sound Protocol, and light, through entraining my circadian rhythm with the energy of the sun. Living In The Light is available here!
Rocks and Roots chronicles my solo backpacking journey on the Superior Hiking Trail and my efforts to overcome nervous system dysregulation, gut dysbiosis, and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome symptoms to complete the 328-mile hike successfully.
The Sacred Self-Healing Method ebook is available here and in most ebook retailers!
The Sacred Self-Healing Workbook is available for purchase here!
Betsy’s first book, Sacred Self-Healing: Finding Peace Through Forgiveness, is available here
Companion Recordings
The companion audio recordings of chants, guided meditations, and sound healing demonstrations that accompany the Sacred Self-Healing Method are available for free on my YouTube channel here
What do you think?
I’d love to have your reply below!
Disclaimer
The preceding material does not constitute medical advice. This information is for information purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, cure, or treatment.
