The Mould Show

Fungal mycotoxins & ME/CFS could this be why you're tired?

Science is all about observation and forming hypotheses to answer questions. For scientists like myself, I’m interested in how the environment affects health, and specifically, how water-damaged buildings and exposure to poor indoor air quality can affect quality of life. For this week on The Mould Show, we're going to be talking about fungal mycotoxins and myalgic encephalomyelitis termed ME for short and chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). The reason I've chosen this topic is that I&a...

Multiple Sclerosis and fungi – is there a link?

This week on The Mould Show we're going to be looking at the gut microbiome and in particular some emerging research that is showing that the diversity of microorganisms found in the gut may be linked to different immune responses and may even affect the pathogenesis of conditions like multiple sclerosis, MS. I'll be reviewing two of the dominant papers in the MS literature around gut microflora and looking at this concept of species diversity. In these papers the scientists looked at ...

Can toxic indoor mould cause immunosuppression?

Imagine that at your workplace - you move to new offices and these offices are sited partially below ground level. Within three months of moving into the new offices, every person who works there has started to suffer from symptoms that consistent with exposure to a water damage buildings and are reacting to the microbes and moulds that are commonly found in these environments. When the symptoms became unbearable, the office staff started looking for answers. This week on The Mould Show, I'...

Hot vs Cold Water Washing & Fungi – Which is Better?

If you're dealing with water damage building interiors, or just wondering what is the best way to clean textiles and clothing that might have become mould contaminated - you might be thinking, why can't I just put them all into the washing machine? Your next question might be: is there something I can do to the washing cycle that will help reduce the population of any germs that might be on those textiles? The answer is yes, there is an optimal way of washing your clothing to remove sp...

DIY Mould Remediation of Paper Documents

In Australia, we're currently suffering from torrential rain all along the east coast, affecting Queensland and New South Wales and potentially moving towards Victoria. Regardless of where you're living, unexpected water damage and mould may be a new problem for you to begin dealing with. This live stream and podcast will focus on how to deal with mould and water damage affecting paper documents. We can all imagine sodden books and libraries underwater, but I'll leave that problem...

One Family's Experience With Building Related Illness

Many people ask me the question: can you really get sick from spending time inside a water-damaged property? Or another related question: Does mould really make people sick? Sometimes I even get questions along the lines of: I can understand why people might not like the smell of mould or even its visual presence, but surely, a little bit of mould can't hurt you? If you've ever been part of these conversations, and want definitive proof that mould can in fact, cause serious problems fo...

Does mould harm children's health?

I'm often asked whether mould affects children's health? I thought this would be an appropriate topic to kick off the new year for The Mould Show in 2022. In approaching this topic, I'm going to review some of the key symptoms associated with exposure to mould and then provide you with an easy visual guide that you can use to not only remember the typical mould symptoms but the causes and effects but that may be helpful when describing indoor air quality issues in your home or wor...

Which Mould Spores are Protective Against COVID-19?

When you think about the over 5M fungal species that exist on the planet and juxtapose this against the approximate 2000 mushrooms species we might eat as food - there really are a lot of chance and probable possibilities for us to come into contact with these microorganisms in our everyday lives. This new paper that came out from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory is quite an eye-opener because it looked at how fungal communities inside 1135 homes in the United States is connected with s...

Censorship of Mould Illness in Finland

This week on The Mould Show, I'm going to be talking about censorship of mould illness. And to do this, we’ll be reviewing a paper that came out earlier this year that focused on the situation in Finland. Essentially, this is a battle between free democracy and socialism and the impact that politics has on contemporary scientific thinking and the dissemination of applied science into the wider community. So, what's this all about? Well, most of us understand the connection between bad ...

Salt Therapy and Mould Illness

In this presentation, I want to review something called salt therapy, which is considered a complementary method for the treatment of respiratory tract illnesses. This will have a special focus on mould related disease. Clinical practice referrals my Company receives revolve around exposure to indoor air dampness and mould, usually in the home. When this is prolonged, it can cause problems including: vocal cords irritation, rhinitis, cough, wheezing and recurrent infections of the upper and lowe...

Black Fungus Risks and COVID-19

Black fungus disease can have a devastating impact for people who contract COVID 19 and even for those who are recovering from COVID-19 and who are more properly classed as COVID long haulers. My purpose in presenting this live stream is really to bring about awareness to every person about the potential impact of black fungus and explore some of the reasons why everyone should be aware of post-COVID infection co-infection with black fungi. It is my hope that this live stream prevents unnecessar...

Clinical Mould Antigen Extracts and Moulds From Water-Damaged Homes

Common health concerns from mould include: asthma, allergic rhinitis, wheeze, cough, shortness of breath, or hypersensitivity pneumonitis, headache, eye and skin problems and other health issues. It is reasonably well known, at least by the integrative health community, that exposure to moulds and other fungi is correlated with a range of allergic and pulmonary diseases in susceptible individuals. Allergy is often tested using antigen extracts. The paper we're discussing today shows that th...

5 Things To Know About Toenail Fungus And COVID-19

Summer is approaching, at least for us here in Australia and for some of us, looking down at our toes might bring on a "yuck" reaction. Why are those nails cracked, fragile or showing discoloration? Are you embarrassed by this? What's causing it? How do I stop it? Is this a sign of something worse? That's the topic of this week's show. And importantly, we're going to be talking about how the health of your toenails and even the health of the nails on your fingers ca...

How Mould Spores Control Influenza-Like Illness

Have you ever wondered whether there's a connection between the seasons and flu like epidemics? Well, this week on The Mould Show, we're going to be looking at two recent pieces of evidence, which focus on the fact that current models for flu-like epidemics are not sufficiently explained by the seasonality effect. Now, most of us would think to ourselves that colds and flus are often more frequent in the cooler winter months, and that gives rise to the seasonality effect. However, two ...

What Is Dampness and Mould Hypersensitivity Syndrome, Anyway?

If you've ever found yourself having trouble explaining to someone why you just don't feel right inside that room or building, then you'll want to watch this. Ok, you might just sneeze a little over springtime when exposed to pollen...but what if those types of symptoms happened to you every time you clocked in at work? How do you make sense of this? Sick building syndrome is a catch-all term that is often used to describe the constellation of symptoms that may occur if you react ...

Avoid the top 8 asthma and allergy triggers in your home

Asthma is a common respiratory condition causing an attack or spasm of the bronchioles or airways that carry air to the lungs. Asthma makes it difficult to breathe and in Australia affects one in nine people equivalent to 2.7 million Australians. In the period between 2017-2018 nearly 40,000 hospitalisations occurred. It's known that 80% of asthma hospitalisations are preventable. Now it's not just the hospital costs - asthma affects quality of life. Asthma sufferers self report their ...

Victoria's Freedom Day - What Will Happen?

On the 22nd October 2021, Victoria, Australia begins our own Freedom Day. But is this really freedom? State-wide vaccine mandates are in force and there's a need for vaccine passports to enter retail. For many, significant restrictions remain. The State is still under a form of medical apartheid. Strict coercion around freedom of choice has forced many to choose vaccination just to re-enter society or keep their job. The censorship around therapeutic options and facts and figures and open d...

What You Should Know About Portable Air Filters

This Week in Victoria and New South Wales and many other parts of Australia we're reopening and a lot of the lockdown restrictions are being lifted. So what does that mean? Well, many of our children will be returning to school - so this week I want to be focusing on a very important non-pharmaceutical intervention, which revolves around indoor air quality. And this is a particularly relevant and topical, because if you've picked up any of the news media over the last couple of weeks, ...

What Can Danish Nurses Tell Us About Heart Health & Air Pollution?

According to the World Health Organization, cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death globally. In 2019, it was estimated that 17.9 million people died from cardiovascular disease. This represents 32% of all global deaths with 85% being caused by heart attack and stroke. It is further reported that 75% of cardiovascular disease deaths, take place in low and middle-income countries. Heart disease and mortality is considered a premature death. This is because most cardiovascular disease...

Lactoferrin and Covid - What You Need To Know

Nicotine, Covid and Inflammation

Foot fungus - this is what professionals do

The Relationship Between Germs And Bed Linen

Watch Out: How Fungi Are Taking Over Nail Salons And What To Do About It

The Relationship Between Indoor Air Quality And Happiness

Studies have shown that people are healthier, more comfortable and more productive in structures with good indoor air quality (IAQ). Be that as it may, I've had a first-hand experience as an indoor air quality and mould inspection expert not only about the huge impact of moulds and water damage on people’s property but also the emotional distress these things can cause them. According to studies, there exists a huge relationship between emotional wellbeing and particulate matter pollution, ...

How best to wash clothing to reduce germs

Hot water or cold water, detergent or the latest green-cleaning additive. What does the literature say? If you want to reduce germs, how best to wash? That's the 3-minute topic today!

Disease Prevention - Is This The Future of Healthcare - Clubhouse Conversation Recap

Prevention, they say, is better than cure. And that forms the basis of preventive medicine, a proactive approach aimed at getting ahead of the potential causes of diseases by promoting healthy behaviours and screening for diseases with the aim to keep people from becoming sick in the first place rather than treating diseases when they eventually occur. In this week on The Mould Show, I dive into the emerging social media, audio-only platform called Clubhouse. Here you'll find a large range ...

In 10 Minutes, I'll Give You The Truth About Having a Mould-Free Home In Humid Climates

Do you know that the most humid parts of the world are Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia; Jakarta, Indonesia; and Singapore, all in South and Southeast Asia as well as Darwin in Australia? This underscores the need to maintain an indoor living environment that is free of mould because of the huge challenges of living in a humid climate. Although mould poses a great risk, especially to those living in humid climates, there are still some practical control measures that can be adopted to stop the growth of...

Top 7 Mast Cell Activation Syndrome Triggers You Should Avoid

Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS) is a very serious, often overlooked condition. About one in four people with the disease cannot work or participate in normal day-to-day activities. It is a disease that affects people of all ages or gender, but one funny thing about it is that it is often unrecognized and possibly remains undiagnosed in many cases. MCAS is a group of diseases involving the immune system. When the triggers occur, antigens are raised inside the body, which might result in itch...

What everyone must know about early life allergen exposure

According to statistics, about 90 percent of our time is spent indoors. The number could be much higher in recent times due to COVID-19 which has caused many governments around the world to impose lockdowns and forced people, including children, to stay home in order to avoid contracting the virus and halt its spread. But more worrisome is the fact that these kids are also exposed to other dangers – like the threat from airborne allergen exposure in their early lives. The American Academy of All...