What happened to my child is a question I’ve heard multiple times. Years ago, it was a question I asked myself amidst many tears.

As I’ve sought to connect the dots and help mothers think back to when their child changed, toxic mold exposure has come up, time and time again.

“We moved into a new house.”
“We switched schools.”
“We began a home remodel.”
“We moved into an old farm house and boom, it was as if a switch had been flipped.”

But why? How does exposure to structures with toxic mold cause neuro-inflammation, autoimmunity, and severe health conditions?

Inhaled mold toxins (mycotoxins) can cause damage to every organ and system in the body, especially the brain and the immune system.

Mycotoxins can access the brain via the nasal cavity and can adversely affect the BBB and lead to increased or new permeability. They can also cause oxidative stress responses, injure and kill microglial cells, damage memory receptors, cause imbalances in neurotransmitters, and more.

Mycotoxins are also lipophilic (attracted to and soluble in lipids or fats). This means that they have an affinity for fatty substances and can dissolve in them.

In biological systems, lipophilic substances tend to accumulate in tissues and organs that contain high amounts of fat, such as the brain, liver, and adipose tissue (body fat). They can also accumulate in the GI mucous membrane layer, nerves, bone marrow, and more. This accumulation happens because lipophilic compounds can easily pass through cell membranes composed of lipid bilayers and become sequestered in lipid-rich environments.

Because mycotoxins have a strong tendency to migrate to and deposit in fatty tissues, it makes exposure to them especially dangerous in children who have had a TBI, those with PANS/PANDAs, and children with Autism.

In addition, mycotoxins can cause gut permeability, immune system damage, hormonal imbalances, lung tissue damage, and cardiovascular damage, to name a few.

Exposure to toxic mold can set the stage for the body to be sickened and weakened by other exposures. Mold exposure can reactivate hidden pathogens as well and cause abnormal immune responses. But you’ll miss it if you’re not paying attention.

In children, mold exposure can cause immediate changes in behavior and in overall health. If a child suddenly starts worrying about silly things, has rage episodes, can’t sleep, stops eating normally, and/or feels depressed, these symptoms could be a sign that mold is affecting the brain and the rest of the body.

Other signs to watch for include:
Increased urination, constipation, changes in behavior and mood, changes in sleep patterns, new or increased obsessive compulsive thoughts, sudden depression and feelings of not belonging, sudden paranoia and unreasonable fears, separation anxiety, memory loss, inability to concentrate and loss of academic skills, inability to do simple math, sudden or increased clumsiness and/or loss of balance, bed-wetting, Interstitial Cystitis and difficulty emptying the bladder, sudden appearance of gray hairs, cystic acne, loss of appetite and restrictive eating, low Iron, Vit D, low electrolyte markers on blood work.

Please note that the previous list is not exhaustive.

For kids injured by environmental toxins like mold, avoidance is extremely important.
The body will have a hard time trying to heal if it’s continually being assaulted by toxicants.

We wouldn’t want to expose a child with lead poisoning to more lead, and in the same way, we should be cautious of doing that with toxic mold.

I’m always a little hesitant to share posts like this because I understand firsthand the fear, anxiety, worry, and helplessness that mothers feel when their child is injured by mold or other toxicants.

I know this information can be the reason for worry, which I understand, but it’s not my intention to cause fear or make you panic. As a mom who has navigated some dark waters health-wise with my children, I understand the worry and the late nights asking God for help.

My hope with this post is to educate and help bring some clarity to any moms out there who may be wondering if what their child is experiencing could be connected to the home or school environment.

Please know that this post is shared solely with the intention to encourage and equip you so you can search for answers and help your kiddos thrive. I also want to bring validation to mamas who have suffered in silence. You are loved and understood in this space. ❤️

With love,
Chemical Free Gal

For more information on PANS/PANDAS click here and here.

Studies/Articles of Interest
Mold inhalation causes innate immune activation, neural, cognitive and emotional dysfunction. 1
Individuals living or working in moldy buildings complain of a variety of health problems including pain, fatigue, increased anxiety, depression, and cognitive deficits. The ability of mold to cause such symptoms is controversial since no published research has examined the effects of controlled mold exposure on brain function or proposed a plausible mechanism of action. Patient symptoms following mold exposure are indistinguishable from those caused by innate immune activation following bacterial or viral exposure.  Mold exposure is clearly a problem. Floods, building and plumbing leaks result in widespread mold contamination. Our data document for the first time that exposure to known quantities of both toxic and nontoxic mold spores activated a central neural immune response with concomitant cognitive and emotional dysfunction. In addition, we identified a mechanism, innate immune activation, which aptly explains how mold exposure may cause such a diverse array of problems. The extent of the contribution of mold exposure to neural and behavioral dysfunction in humans under ecologically-relevant conditions remains to be determined. However, mold exposure, both toxic and nontoxic, must be considered another factor, like pesticide exposure or smoking, that can add to an individual’s burden of inflammation with possible serious consequences for health and behavior.

Microglial Location, Morphology, and Cognitive Performance in Microglial Location, Morphology, and Cognitive Performance in Mold-Exposed Mice Mold-Exposed Mice. 2

Mold inhalation, brain inflammation, and behavioral dysfunction.
Exposure to mold can cause neurological problems, increased anxiety and depression, and cognitive deficits. 3

Effects of Mycotoxins on Neuropsychiatric Symptoms and Immune Processes. 4
Exposure to molds is most commonly associated with allergies and asthma. However, it is now thought to be associated with many complex health problems, since some molds, especially Trichoderma, Fusarium and Stachybotrys spp, produce mycotoxins that are absorbed from the skin, airways, and intestinal lining. People exposed to molds and mycotoxins present with symptoms affecting multiple organs, including the lungs, musculoskeletal system, as well as the central and peripheral nervous systems. Furthermore, evidence has recently implicated exposure to mycotoxins in the pathogenesis of autism spectrum disorder. The effects of mycotoxins can be mediated via different pathways that iclude the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines, especially from mast cells.

Neurologic and neuropsychiatric syndrome features of mold and mycotoxin exposure. 5
Human exposure to molds, mycotoxins, and water-damaged buildings can cause neurologic and neuropsychiatric signs and symptoms. Many of these clinical features can partly mimic or be similar to classic neurologic disorders, including pain syndromes, movement disorders, delirium, dementia, and disorders of balance and coordination. 

*As always, nothing in this post or in other posts on chemicalfreegal.com is intended to be medical advice. The information is shared solely for educational purposes.