You’ve got CIRS but is all mold dangerous?

So you've been diagnosed with Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (AKA Mold Illness), but mold is everywhere, right? It is present naturally in outdoor environments such as decaying leaves. It even IS the food we eat- consider the beloved wedge of cheese. So, if mold is prevalent, what mold is actually making you sick versus what molds are simply living their best moldy life and should be left alone. Let's break it down.

When you are suffering from mycotoxin illness, you want to avoid exposure to water damaged building- that school with the infamous bucket out on repeat when it rains, the home that has flooded, the store with the musty smell. Avoid, avoid, avoid! These molds associated with water damaged buildings can surely wreak havoc on your health. What about the moldy blueberry or your regular java beans? Dr, Ritchie Shoemaker who has developed the only evidence-based protocol to treat CIRS would say that these are not the culprits. And while I wouldn't encourage you to eat food with visible mold growth- or spoiled food- I don't believe it is driving CIRS. There may be reasons you don't tolerate cheese such as cow caesin combined with a low melanocyte stimulating hormone (MSH) which is common in CIRS. Or it could be lactose intolerance. Raking those decaying leaves gives you fits? Could be a mold allergy which is different then the immune response of CIRS although they can co-exist. The challenge is that it IS complicated.

ERMI and HERTSMI testing can help us understand if our home, school, or work building is driving our CIRS diagnosis. ERMI can show water-damaged building molds from other less concerning molds such as houseplant molds. When interpreting an ERMI, we can turn to a CIRS savvy indoor environmental professional (IEP) to help us understand the specifics of our situation.

A diagnosis of CIRS can be scary. Do not fear the blueberry. The take home here is that water-damaged buildings drive this vicious disease AND there is a peer-reviewed, published protocol to treat it. That sounds like HOPE to me.

You can subscribe to our YouTube channel to get a weekly dose of hope from Dr. Sparks herself.

You can read about CIRS Shoemaker Protocol starting from the beginning at Step #1 here.

You can read more about Dr. Sparks’s journey as a medical provider hellbent on healing her own erythromelalgia here.

Read about Dr. Sparks’s healing her chronic inflammatory response syndrome (CIRS) and how that connects to EM here.

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