All 11 of us have now tested positive for aflatoxins. When you understand the nature of these mycotoxins and their capacity to do harm this could be alarming news. But, as one who has searched for answers for months on end, this news comes as a relief.
No more wondering which child to treat. No more wondering about Chris or myself. I recommend this test (which is a urine test) wholeheartedly to someone concerned about mold exposure and their family. Aflatoxin is the mycotoxin that comes from aspergillus. Ochratoxin comes from penicillium and tricothecene comes from stachybotrys. It's best to run the complete mycotoxin panel. The tests are available through Real Time Labs and require a doctor's order. They are costly but often reimbursed by insurance.
A couple of other notes about aflatoxins.The World Health Organization acknowledges these toxins to be carcinogenic. Aflatoxins can be found in peanuts and grains. To some degree we are all exposed on a daily basis. Our bodies generally will handle trace amounts. It's the high levels that occur in a water-damaged indoor environment and/or in foods that must be addressed.
About Andrea Fabry
I am a former journalist and the mother of nine children ranging in age from 28 to 12. My husband Chris, myself, and our children find ourselves in the desert of Arizona attempting to rebuild our health and our lives following a massive toxic mold exposure. The organization momsAWARE comes out of this crisis as a means to help educate and empower others on the subject of environmental health. Our family has also launched a natural line of personal care products called Just So, available at our Online Store.
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We are praying for you and your family daily. We are sickened and our heart aches for you as you go through all of this with your family. We are sad to see you all go to Arizona but we understand that you do whatever you have to for your family. Please know we will do whatever we can for you.
ReplyDeleteAndrew and Stephanie Stevens
Andrea, thanks for the RealTime Labs recommendation. I was impressed with the April 2009 article that featured their work in the Intl. Journal of Molecular Sciences (referenced in your April 7th blog entry). We are going to use them for our family's mycotoxin testing. When I called the lab, Dr. Hooper gave a lot of good info that I wanted to share here:
ReplyDelete1) First, remove yourself from the mold environment!
2) Then, if you haven’t started de-toxing already, go ahead and do a few days of detox treatments with a sequestering medicine before doing the urine sample (you can use something like Cholestyramine if you’re a Ritchie Shoemaker patient like me, but there are other internal detox agents besides CSM). The logic goes that starting the detoxing process will help mobilize the toxins that get imbedded in various body systems so they will be more likely to appear in the urine.
3) Dr. Hooper said to make sure you know what you’re doing with CSM because it can rob the body of essential Vitamins like A, D, E, and K. So he encouraged me to ask my doctor about using vitamin supplements during CSM treatments and to be sure the CSM is taken on a completely empty stomach (partly I presume to avoid robbing these vitamins & nutrients from a meal).
4) As an alternative to CSM (or in addition to CSM since I know Dr. Shoemaker would bristle at suggesting an alternative to CSM!), Dr. Hooper recommended a liquid Glutathione substance called “Liposomal Glutathione” which is described in detail at www.readisorb.com. He said Dr. Guilford can be personally contacted through that website and is a great resource. This product can be found for approx. $65 and is over-the-counter, I believe. Andrea, I know you have posted some of the benefits of Glutathione and I am anxious to look into it more. Dr. Hooper described it as a substance that has worked effectively for mycotoxin affected patients in as little as 10 days to 2 weeks.
Andrea, I have a question for you about the Living Clay detox baths you do for your kids. Given the expense, I could only afford to buy the 16 oz. container of the detox clay powder (that was $22.95 plus $10 shipping!), and then I was further discouraged when I got it and saw that they recommend using 2 full cups in a single bath. With 8 ounces to a cup, that’s the full container, right?! Some other website said to cut the measurement in half when you’re dealing with a kids’ detox bath, but that’s still only 2 baths out of a 16 oz. container. Have you done anything differently to get more mileage out of this product?
If this helps anyone, I did find another website that sells the same Living Clay product at a small discount and with free shipping if you buy the 4lb. or higher quantities. See http://www.biogro.us/livingclay.html
God Bless
Was just reading on this post and comments. I agree with what Tom said. I can tell you we have done CSM but it's ROUGH to keep up with. We have started to take Glutathione, which I LOVE! I have a prescription for the nebulized Glutathione but my son takes Liposomal Glutathione (without a prescription). It works very good. Also, Sauna is great for detoxing as well or even just a super hot bath, then immediately shower off your skin to get the toxins that you just sweated off of your skin so they don't absorb back in. Vitamin E, Vitamin C (high doses), C0Q10 are all good in helped your body get rid of stuff. Although NOT well, I have found that "natural" seems to work better for my family than prescriptions. I have to say, for my family, that concentrating on getting our immune systems built back up has been more beneficial than anything else (those are the things Doctors don't always tell you). Although I am not convinced we'll ever be right again, especially after over three years of this illness, I do believe there is hope to live better lives. God bless all! Oh, great book to read "The E.I. Syndrome" by Dr. Sherry Rogers! E.I. meaning Environmental Illness. She really breaks things down and helps you understand what natural and prescription meds to take to help.
ReplyDeleteDear anonomous,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the info. We were on CSM for two months and then moved away from it. Psyllium husks are a good alternative. (no robbing of vitamins).
I ordered the book along with hers on chemical sensitivity. Thanks!
Andrea