Week of July 22, 2024

1/ Swimming pools QUESTION: A patient from Australia writes, is it possible for mold spores to exist in a chlorinated swimming pool? ANSWER: If the pool is outdoors it is highly unlikely that the pool itself is contributing to your illness assuming normal levels of chlorine (or algaecide) or whatever biocide is being used. For people who have indoor pools, the extra moisture and humidity can contribute to enhanced growth of microbes. The water itself, however, will not provide habitat that support mold spores. 2/ Swimming, indoors QUESTION: I feel that swimming is a wonderful exercise to help patients recover from CIRS. Is an indoor pool safe? ANSWER: The excessive humidity indoors from pools and spas is a giant area of concern for creating a habitat suitable for growth of toxigenic organism. If you have an indoor pool Iwould be monitoring HERTSMI-2 on a regular basis with the cost of monitoring simply being added to whatever kinds of maintenance costs are involved. Don’t forget that swimming is arduous; exceeding the anaerobic threshold in CIRS patients occurs easily in a swimming workout. Better to make sure anaerobic threshold is improved by following the exercises described in Surviving mold and then taking on swimming. 3/ Daughter with 4-3-53 going to college QUESTION: I was hoping you could give me some insight on how I can protect my daughter from contaminated housing and unsafe school environments during her college years? My daughter has one of the dreaded haplotypes with ill health. Do I need to get a 504? Is there anything else you would recommend? ANSWER: I will share some comments made by a patient’s family as it is from the heart. “We made site visits to numerous college campuses across the country and chose one that was continually upgrading their facilities. Texas Christian University (TCU) in Ft Worth, Texas seemed to be a good fit for our daughter since they were constantly building new dorms and classrooms. New construction was a major selection issue. Fortunately, she had options so we were able to be selective. “Although she did the best she could with her choice, no campus is 100 percent clean. She immediately knew that some of the frat/sorority houses, dorms and other suchplaces were not healthy environments and made the choice to stay away. Avoidance of certain activities seemed to be the best strategy for her as she attempted to participate in college life. We had already experienced the removal from classroom environment throughout high school and that was a horrible experience. Further isolation in college was not an option. It was a must for her to get a full college experience. So she had to pick her spots. Nothing was perfect by any means. Some classrooms at school give her problems and she struggles with that continuously. Whenever she finds herself in that position, she deals with it the best she knows how. She knows the treatment protocol and does her best to stay on top of the treatment regimen. She has her CSM, VIP and whatever she needs to get her back on track when setbacks occur. “The good news is that three years have zipped by. Our pride and joy is studying for finals this week and will complete her junior year as marketing major. She will be a graduating senior on time next year and has been accepted into the Neely School of Business. She leaves for her business school study abroad program at the end of this month where she will be in Barcelona, Cologne and Dijon, France with her classmates. Since she has been in college she has traveled to Germany over Christmas her sophomore year and toured Ireland last summer as well as side trips to London and Paris. I am so proud of this little girl who couldn’t get out of bed her freshman year in high school. Her entire high school experience was incredibly stressful and I know she suffered immensely. Fortunately, she followed Dr. Shoemaker’s specific protocol and he got her well. She is forever changed by her illness, but only for the good. I am proud to say that she is well and thriving. “Everybody is different, but once college rolled around, I found it better to let her deal with her illness and manage it the best she could on her own. Rather than run interference for her and receive accommodations, we chose to deal with the issues privately and make adjustments on our own. It wasn't easy to take that route, but we had gone the adversarial route for many years in high school and found that it only created an environment of stress and discontent. That strategy seemed almost as unhealthy as a water damaged building. So we remained in the background providing whatever support we could possible give this young adult. Each year seemed to get a little easier. 4/ PETS QUESTION: What advice do you have on treating pets that are showing signs of mold illness? ANSWER: Without making assumptions, it seems difficult to me to confirm that a pet is affected by exposure to water-damaged buildings. We are forced to rely on a case definition in people that requires presence of symptoms that follow exposure to a water-damaged building and are associated with lab abnormalities (preferably including visual contrast sensitivity). Without all of those elements available to be tested in pets, I think we are forced to admit that the diagnosis of a chronic inflammatory response syndrome can not be made definitively in a pet. Over the years I have had the opportunity to work with veterinarians involved with treatment of race horses in Kentucky; hawksbill turtles and pelicans in Florida; sea lions in San Francisco; as well as dogs and cats around the country. There is no question that there are animals who are not acting right or who are not acting like their pre-exposure self that are much better after having been treated with cholestyramine. I do not pretend to provide veterinarian advice. As far as pets go, I have not been able to confirm ongoing risk of pets for carrying bioaerosols after removal from exposure and a soapy bath. 5/ MRI testing, NeuroQuant QUESTION: I recently had an MRI as part of the evaluation of my multisystem illness. I believe that mold is responsible for my illness but my radiologist could not give me any information of benefit regarding possible fungal infection. ANSWER: Fungal infection in the brain is quite rare. What we see on MRI images are areas of scarring called gliosis, found in approximately 45% of cases but only 5% of controls. There is nothing specific about these areas of gliosis that will define an inflammatory response syndrome caused by exposure to the interior environment of water-damaged buildings. Use of NeuroQuant, however, has revolutionized the assessment of MRI imaging of the brain in that there is a distinct volumetric pattern found in mold patients not found to date in other illnesses or in controls. More Surviving Mold Resources: There is additional information on NeuroQuant on the www.survivingmold website with a NeuroQuant EPA presentation (in Power Point) in March of 2013 together with a discussion on NeuroQuant presented in October of 2013 as well as our peer-reviewed and published in Neurotoxicology and Teratology Paper in June 2014. Please review those two PowerPoints and make arrangements for your physician to order NeuroQuant for you. Also available on the Surviving Mold site is a NeuroQuant Analyisis which will track mold and lyme points in your NeuroQuant report, and more. You will receive a print out report to share with your physician. 6/ Brain Tumor, NeuroQuant QUESTION: If a patient has a benign brain tumor, would it be worthless to get a NeuroQuant? ANSWER: It would still be helpful as it could be a possible source of asymmetry, among other findings including assessing for potential Mold and Lyme points. 7/ Diet for CIRS patients QUESTION: Other than gluten free, is there a diet to follow? ANSWER: Some patients may need to follow the low amylose diet during step 7 of the Shoemaker Protocol™, correcting elevated MMP-9 levels. That being said, many patients feel better if they follow a gluten free or low amylose diet to support low inflammation, yet Dr. Shoemaker is fond of saying he follows a “see food diet.” If you see food, you may eat it if it doesn’t bother you, or if you have unrelated food sensitivities. Food sensitivities are not a direct symptom of CIRS, yet there are CIRS patients that find they also have food sensitivities, which may require specialized care. A healthy digestive system and gut will support your overall health and wellness. The first step is simply paying attention to your biome/gut and digestive system, and tend to its health needs and requirements. A couple common sense rules to apply are: pay attention to how foods and drinks affect you, and eat to feel good and sleep well. Eating foods that don’t upset the apple cart, and feel good to your system, plus getting the nutrition you need will support your ability to thrive as a CIRS patient for the long-term. For a more in-depth look at the no-amylose diet and Dr. Shoemaker’s scientific approach to managing weight and feel-good, low-inflammatory nutrition, you may be interested in Dr. Shoemaker’s book, “Lose the Weight You Hate,” available on the Surviving Mold Website. 8/ CIRS Symptoms: QUESTION: Are restless leg syndrome, insomnia and tinnitus in one ear common mold toxicity symptoms? Restless leg syndrome and insomnia are common symptoms but tinnitus is not. 9/ Symptoms, Hearing QUESTION: Can CIRS affect one’s hearing? ANSWER: Yes, sensorineural hearing loss can result from injury to the Organ of Corti. As symptom inquiries tend to be a frequent question, here is a general overview: There are many mold symptoms, because the illness affects multiple systems in the body, which in turn, causes the patient to exhibit multiple symptoms. If you are experiencing several of these symptoms, you could be suffering from mold illness. ♦Fatigue ♦Weakness ♦Aches ♦Muscle Cramps ♦Unusual Pain ♦Ice Pick Pain ♦Headache ♦Light Sensitivity ♦Red Eyes ♦Blurred Vision ♦Tearing ♦Sinus Problems ♦Cough ♦Shortness of Breath ♦Abdominal Pain ♦Diarrhea ♦Joint Pain ♦Morning Stiffness ♦Memory Issues ♦Focus/Concentration Issues ♦Word Recollection Issues ♦Decreased Learning of New Knowledge ♦Confusion ♦Disorientation ♦Skin Sensitivity ♦Mood Swings ♦Appetite Swings ♦Sweats (especially night sweats) ♦Temperature Regulation Problems ♦Excessive Thirst ♦Increased Urination ♦Static Shocks ♦Numbness ♦Tingling ♦Vertigo ♦Metallic Taste ♦Tremors For a more in-depth look, see the Symptom Roster in our Free Downloadable Guide, “Got Mold?”