Allergic vs. Toxic reaction

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I just pulled this out of some old files and thought it might be

interesting for the many new members to read over and the rest of us

check it out again if you have seen it already.

144-Allergic vs. Toxic reaction would you please define for me the

difference between being allergic > to mold vs. suffering from

toxicity? Date: 12-01-2001 01:08

YOU have asked an excellent and difficult question. I will answer it

from a clinical point of view from my own experiences, from

experience gained by discussing symptoms with those afflicted and

from my reading of the literature.

Allergic symptoms to mold would include sneezing; a running and itchy

nose; watering and itching of the eyes; nasal stuffiness; respiratory

symptoms such as wheezing and coughing, especially in asthmatics;

itching of the skin.

Toxic symptoms are due to mycotoxins on the mold spores. They can

include: memory loss ; attention deficit/concentration problems ;

personality changes such as irritability or depression; neurological

disorders such as tremors; tingling or burning of nose, mouth;

chronic fatigue; dizziness; nausea/vomiting; bleeding in the lungs;

suppression of the immune system; headache; flu-like symptoms; red

eyes (without watering or itching); incoordination; muscle spasms and

cramps; damage to internal organs. Toxic symptoms from these

mycotoxins have similarities to toxic symptoms from poisoning.

Stachybotrys spores produce multiple mycotoxins, including

trichothecenes. Trichothecenes have been produced commercially for

use in biological warfare. These are strong neurotoxins. Mycotoxins

are nearly all cytotoxic, disrupting various cellular structures such

as membranes, and interfering with vital cellular processes such as

protein, RNA and DNA synthesis

If you were to meet a person suffering from allergy to mold, that

person would most likely complain of symptoms similar to those

of " hay fever'. Those symptoms are detailed above under " allergic

symptoms " . The symptoms would most likely be described as annoying

(with varying degrees of annoyance); they would not, however, be

described as devastating. Their symptoms would be rather straight

forward , easily observable and easily understandable. If you were to

meet a person suffering from toxicity due to mold mycotoxins, your

first impression might be that the person is affected by a mental

problem. Your first thought might be that the person would be best

off consulting a psychiatrist or a psychologist. The person might

have a lot of vague symptoms -symptoms way out of proportion to what

you could observe - symptoms that might be difficult for the affected

person to explain and for you to understand. But, the underling

theme, if you listened carefully, would be that of toxicity. Most

likely the toxic person would complain of extreme fatigue, weakness,

tiredness, flu-like symptoms, and often respiratory problems: but not

usually coughing or wheezing, instead, he/she would complain of

terrible burning or soreness in his/her lungs, possibly aggravated

with exertion or exercise. And, instead of telling you that the

experience was one of annoyance (to a lesser or greater degree) as

allergy sufferers would tell you, the toxic sufferer would more

likely describe her/his experience as a hellish nightmare.

The toxic sufferer's behavior would more likely be that of a frantic

effort to get away from the contaminated source and an almost

paranoiac effort to rid themselves of contaminated materials. This is

in stark contrast to the allergic sufferer who would most likely find

the offending mold to be more of a nuisance rather than a substance

sent from hell.

I hope this will be of help to you. ph P. Klein, sr., M.D.

16.1-Mold Symptoms

SYMPTOMS

1. Cold and Flu!ike symptoms

More frequent and hang on longer than a regular flu/cold

2. Sinus infections - that will not go away after 3 months

(confirmed by the Mayo

Clinic)

3. Itchy eyes and/or sore throat

4. Bronchitis, asthma attacks, allergies

Appears to cause them to be more severe and more frequent than usual

5. Hard to breath

unlike an asthma attack, can not fill lungs up with enough air

6. General feeling of malays

Just do not feel quite right, like you may be coming down with

something

7. Tightness in the chest

Almost like you are having a heart attack. Sharpe stabbing pain

8. Pneumonia

9. Coughing up blood

Dark in color, dried, can be in chunks

10. Nosebleeds

unexplained, very frequent, uncontrollable

11. vomiting

Unable to keep most foods down, frequent

12. Diarrehea

Frequent

13. Dizziness

Equalibriurn/off balance, fainting

14. Rapid heartbeat

Abnormal heartbeat, skip, flutter,pain

15. Thirsty all the time

16. Unusual weight gain - women more than men

Bloating, almost like you are several months pregnant

17. Mood Swings/Altering/Personality changes

Due to chemical imbalance of the brain

18. Hair loss or thinning (eyelashes, eyebrows also)

19. Loosing or breaking of teeth

20. Acid Reflux/Pain and lump in the solarplex area (stomach)

Especially after

eating, takes several hours to disappear. Painful, rock hard

21. " Zoned out feeling " , like being drugged

22. unable to concentrate/brain fog/Unable to Multitask

At times like the brain shuts down its thought process, unable to

remember how to do the simplist tasks

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16.1-Mold Symptoms

23. Vision Blurring

unable to vocus, distorted

24. Pressure behind eyes

Like something is pushing behind the eye, painful

25. Fatigue/Fibromyalgia

Pain or numbness in extremities

26. Persistant Headaches (headpain)

worse than a migraine. Intense, will not respond to pain medications.

Normally located in temporal area and base of skull

27. Numbness in either temple,Disco!oration. Numbness in face,

can lead to a

misdiagnosis of Bells Palsy.

28. Short and/or long term memory problems/ADD/ADHD

Short term more severe, unable to remember common things, ie writing

out check,color of car, how to cook,etc. Long term seems to be

affected for a short deration

29. Pressure in ear(s)

Painful, like you have water or something stuck deep within the ear

30. Bleeding fraw ears or clear fluid, some have bleeding under

finger nails,

unexplained

31. Strokelike episodes

Mimics a stroke, does not show up on normal testing

32. Hands and/or feet swelling

Painful

33. Sweating/sick feeling, sporadic fevers

Due to the toxins being released from the fatty tissue into the blood

stream

34. Itching and/or burning rash/hives

Not relieved with medications. Like acid has been poured on the skin,

scarring. Some have constant itching.

35. Constant kidney pain

Due to the kidneys being over taxed by toxins

36. Urine turning brown or has a musty odor

Turning into severe liver/kidney problems

37. Chemical Sensitivity

Perfumes, hairsprays and household products, can be very severe

38. Moles & skin tags (all of a sudden appearing)

39. Lumps and/or sores on scalp

That do not go away, painful to touch

40. Lymph nodes swelling in various parts of the body, ie: at

base of skull, chest,

neck, underarms, etc.

Due to buildup of toxins in system

41. Problems with menstration (discoloration)

42. Blood in stool

43. Hearing lose

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