In our last episode, we introduced you to Allison. She was dealing with:  Allison was dealing with brain fog, fatigue, and joint pain. She felt much older than her chronological years. Labs showed that her B vitamins, iron, and thyroid were all fine but her symptoms persisted. We spoke with Jason Earle who is the founder and CEO of 1-800-Got-Mold and has appeared as an expert on The Dr. Oz Show, Good Morning America, and Extreme Home Makeover. In that episode, he gave us so much great information about mold and debunked a whole bunch of myths around mold, how to test for it, and how to get rid of it. If you haven’t listened to that episode, I highly recommend that you go back and give it a listen.  In this episode, we dive into how to regain your health once you’ve cleared the mold out of your house and have reduced exposure.    Exposure to Mold Through Diet Many of the symptoms related to mold exposure revolve around inflammation. Despite having dealt with the environmental exposure to mycotoxins and mold in your home, you may still be exposed to them in your diet. Grains, sugar, processed foods, and peanut butter. Removing these from your diet is the next step in detoxing from mold exposure. Doing a no sugar, no grains diet will also help reduce the inflammation that mold exposure will have contributed to.   Purging Mycotoxins from Your Body There are several ways to rid the body of mycotoxins after extended exposure. One is to purge them through sweat (exercise and saunas are great for this). Another is to take glutathione which will stimulate the release of mycotoxins in the body. Urine tests can confirm that mycotoxins are being released. Mycotoxins can be detected in blood and urine. You want to see the mycotoxins in the urine because that proves they are being released.  Jason cautions against believing in any absolute - any singular way to treat mycotoxin exposure. He personally had a bad experience with Cholestyramine despite others having reported being successful in removing toxins (along with removing cholesterol and other fats from the body). You have to find the approach that will work for you but Jason says that lifestyle changes may be the hardest but, in his experience, they are the most effective.    Treat Your Liver Well One of the parts of the body impacted by exposure to microbial VOCs is the liver. Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is on the rise with an estimated 30% of Americans affected by it. The American Liver Foundation reports that about 100 million Americans have Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease and that NAFLD is the most common form of liver disease in children (having doubled in the past 20 years).  Jason believes this is due to increased exposure to VOC (not just microbial but also chemical VOCs caused by off gassing from plastics, petroleum-based products and other man made products).  To protect the liver’s health, decrease or eliminate alcohol and sugar. Use air purifiers. Get outside and work up a sweat.    Don’t Ignore Musty Smells Jason reminds us that a musty smell indicates the presence of microbial VOCs. And, as was discussed in the last episode, it’s not just mycotoxins we need to be concerned about. If there is a musty smell, then there are microbial VOCs present. Breathing these in along with chemical VOCs (which may not be detectable by odor alone) can cause health issues. It can cause inflammation, impeded breathing (especially for asthmatics), brain fog, and other health concerns.    Top Tips for Reducing Mold and Mold Related Issues To keep things simple, Jason recommends these lifestyle choices: Ventilate spaces well Use an air purifier Keep spaces clean (don’t let mold accumulate - wet areas can go moldy in 72 hours) Eat clean (avoid mold harboring foods like sugar, grains, peanut butter, and processed foods) Exercise (sweating helps eliminate toxins from the body) Don’t count on a pill (or magic bullet) to do the entire job Don’t ignore or dismiss musty smells   Check Your