Feeling tired? Bad Memory?

You may have encountered deadly toxins that are common, but little is known to the general public.

Stachybotrys

I was near death: Memory shot, apathetic, depressed, chest pains, tingling in the extremities, confused, nose bleeds; all because of exposure to deadly toxins from the Stachybotrys Fungus.

The handsome, brilliant young investment banker was, in the words of his co-worker, reduced "to a nincompoop". He lost his job because he couldn't perform anymore. A specialist found this man to have permanent brain damage. He often just stares off into space without realizing he was gone.

It could be lurking in your home; in your office.

Elementary schools have been closed. A grade school in Canada was demolished and burned.

People in tenement buildings in New York are suing for $8 Billion:

for alleged health problems, such as this poor lady with a terrible rash. Residents complain about respiratory problems, foot fungus, rashes, insomnia, headaches, memory loss and bleeding from the nose, ears and gums. The ailments are particularly acute among the elderly and kids.

On ABC's Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, aired October 1, 2006, David Gilliam, a firefighter and emergency medical technician, was reported to have been working in the basement in his home. He didn't realize that he had been exposed to the toxic black mold. Immediately, he had flu symptoms. Two days later he was dead.

David Gilliam simultaneously worked several jobs to support his family in order to fulfill his dream of becoming a firefighter and EMT. He was one state test away from getting his instructor coordinator license when he suddenly died. As a result of her husband's autopsy, Maryann learned that the basement of her family's home was contaminated with dangerous levels of toxic spores. Her doctor advised the mother and her six children to vacate the house for health reasons.

The good news is that the Extreme Makeover Home Edition team built a new house in the Michigan Armada Township.

Unfortunately, an estimated 5% of the homes in the United States suffer from the same toxic mold and the problem is probably worse in the aftermath of the hurricanes of 2005.

Black Mold

What is stachybotrys?

It is more commonly known as black mold.

Normally, the spores of stachybotrys are as common as dust and outside, they do not usually pose much of a health hazard.

All it takes is some cellulose that is wet for 3 or 4 days and exposure to the spores of the fungus, and it grows, and grows, and grows....

It is much like mold in bread, sending out a network of tendrils and producing more spores.

The cellulose black mold grows on, may be in the form of wet wood or paper, wallboard, press board, sawdust, plywood. Under certain conditions, it can grow on glucose, and it is known that, in some cases, it can wipe out lungs, growing through them like moldy bread. It seems to like dark, wet areas, which are nitrogen poor.

It grows very well in dimly lit closets. It likes damp window frames, sweating from condensation. It likes wet places behind refrigerators.

Once stachybotrys takes hold in a home, it may be very difficult to eradicate. It gets into the walls of the home and grows behind the paint of the wallboard. It grows very nicely in the substratum of the floors. The dusty, musty spores get into the ventilation system and blow all over the house.

An estimated 2% to 5% of all houses in the United States have the stachybotrys black mold.

In the case of the investment banker, his family had a 27 room mansion on a horse ranch outside of Dallas, Texas. The fungus started growing behind the refrigerator and kept right on growing under the floor. They all had nose bleeds. Their child has emphysema. Professionals came in to remedy the situation, but it was too late. The family had to walk away from the home with only the clothes on their backs. The neurotoxins from the spores had contaminated everything in the house: All the furniture, the toys, papers and documents; it was too dangerous to retain anything.

I had a similar experience.

Spreading it around:

Skin:

Touching moldy surfaces such as furniture and coming in contact with plants that may have molds can result in local skin irritation (redness or mild swelling) or possibly ulceration (rare).

Ingestion:

Several toxic fungal species on spoiled food stuff (nuts, grain, rice, agricultural products) can cause serious intestinal food poisoning, liver cancer (aflatoxin from Aspergillus) or even death.

Chlorine in the form of bleach, seems to be the only thing that can kill it. The spores can endure extreme cold and heat. They can grow in a temperature range of 34 degrees to 92 degrees Fahrenheit. The fungus will usually produce large amounts of conidiophores and conidia giving the substrate a black appearance that can be slightly shiny when fresh and powdery when dry.

Stachybotrys chartarum is most commonly found in homes or buildings, which have sustained flooding, or water damage from broken pipes, roof leaks, sewage backup, condensation, etc. Spores are found in the soil and introduced along with floodwaters or dust and dirt entering with water from a roof leak, etc. It is most common on the paper covering of sheetrock, but can be found on wallpaper, ceiling tiles, paper products, carpets with natural fibers, paper covering on insulated pipes, in insulation material, on wood, and on general organic debris. Because leaks can occur behind walls and in covered ceiling areas, the fungus may grow profusely, but not be readily visible. It can also be found in ducts if organic debris is present.

Mycotoxins [fungus toxins] and other biologically active compounds produced by S. chartarum are the reason why this fungus is of concern to human health. Mycotoxin poisoning by this fungus is referred to as stachybotryotoxicosis. Stachybotrys chartarum produces six types of macrocyclic tricothecenes: roridin E, satratoxins F, G and H, trichoverrols, trichoverrins, verrucarol and verrucarin J. The satratoxins are generally produced in greater amounts than the other trichothecenes, but all compounds are produced in low quantities. They occur in all parts of the fungus. One isolate was reported to contain about 15 ppm trichothecene in the conidia. The difficulty in obtaining, identifying and purifying these toxins has slowed extensive studies on their biological activity. Macrocyclic trichothecenes are highly toxic compounds.

In addition, the fungus produces 9-phenylspirodrimanes (spirolactones and spirolactams) and cyclosporin which are potent immunosuppressive agents. Jarvis et al. (1995) suggested that the combination of trichothecenes and these immunosuppressive agents may be responsible for the observed high toxicity of this fungus.

The toxins severely affect the immune system. They can be responsible for high blood pressure and even the initiation of diabetes and other serious chronic conditions.

The black mold is deadly.

If you find it, deal with it right away. The first line of defense is chlorine which may be found in bleach or such products as X14. The ultimate solution is the destruction and removal of all the affected areas -- many times, the entire structure must be razed to provide relief. Once the mold takes hold, it is difficult to eradicate.

For more information, reference the following:

PULMONARY HEMORRHAGE AND HEMOSIDEROSIS IN INFANTS

Chat threads on the Toxboard