The next scaredemic is here & it's mold. Can we stop pretending mold is safe now? And can we not fear monger over this fusarium situation when it seems other types of mold are more dangerous?

Happy Friday the 13th!

ICYMI, two Chinese nationals, 33 year-old Yunqing Jian and 34 year-old Zunyong Liu, were recently charged with conspiracy, smuggling fusarium mold into the U.S., false statements, and visa fraud in connection to Liu’s flight to the U.S. last year. Per the U.S. Attorney’s Office, this mold’s “toxins cause vomiting, liver damage, and reproductive defects in humans and livestock.”1 It is alleged Jian received Chinese government funding for her work on this mold and her devices show membership and loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party and Liu, Jian’s boyfriend, also worked on this same mold. Jian allegedly admitted to law enforcement that he smuggled the mold into the U.S. so he could study it at the laboratory at the University of Michigan where they both worked. Although Jian has been arrested, Liu remains at large and is thought to be in China.2

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I will be the first person to tell you that mold is no joke and can provide you with a plethora of studies about the myriad of health problems mold can cause. I’ve lived through mold illness myself. I will also be the first person to tell you there is speculation of mold being used to make biological weapons such as “Yellow Rain” and there is speculation that mold was behind the witch scares of the 1600s - the diet of the Puritans was largely rye bread and in the years of the witch scares, there is evidence ergot fungus grew on the rye grains, which contains lysergic acid, the precursor to the hallucinogen LSD, so no wonder everyone was panicking over witches. I sometimes joke with my partner we better not tell the government of the mold in our home or any drug dealers or they may try to take our home by eminent domain or force to turn into a bioweapons lab or drug making lab.

But I will also be the first person to tell you this fusarium freak-out is NO BIG DEAL. Why?

There’s about a 50% chance you have some type of mold like fusarium in your home, workplace, or school already. It doesn’t matter where you are. It doesn’t matter if you’re in a new building or old. Mold doesn’t discriminate. Got water damage? You probably have mold. Mold is like a ghost. You can’t always see it. You can’t always smell it. But it will haunt you.

As for fusarium - it’s already in about 80% of wheat.3 Yes, a lot of food is discarded because it is already contaminated.

Scientists are still learning more about our genetic predisposition to detoxify from toxins, which are ubiquitous in our world, but there’s a chance you have some sort of gene variant which hinders your ability to detox from toxins.

That’s why I think more people need to be tested for mycotoxins (the toxic metabolites produced by some molds) and other toxins such as metals, PFAS, and the like - because I believe they are the cause or at least a contributing cause - to every chronic illness. In fact, I joke that I am a “toxicantphobe” - years ago I used to be a germaphobe, but now I believe toxicants (that is toxins, which are naturally occurring, and toxic chemicals, which are man-made) are more of a concern.

The good news? Healing from toxins/toxic chemicals is possible. There are precautions you can take to prevent exposure to toxicants. There are ways you can test and treat your environment. More on that to come later.

And remember a positive mindset and living with little stress are some of the best tools your immune system has.