Food Intolerances

Several of my children developed food intolerances and/or allergies during the height of our mold exposure. Our oldest daughter Erin showed signs of a nut allergy before moving to our home in Colorado. The allergy became life threatening within months after we moved. Now that I know that peanuts are one of the top food carriers of aflatoxins all of us stay away from peanuts. We use almond butter instead.

It is common for those with biotoxin illness to develop an intolerance to gluten. Gliadin is the 18-amino acid protein found in gluten. It normally passes through the intestines just fine. Not necessarily so for those exposed to mold. When the gliadin is absorbed into the system, antibodies are made to fight off the invasion. This leads to inflammation. A typical gliadin antibody level is under 11. Kaitlyn's most recent blood test showed a level of 42. At the height of our exposure Colin's level was 105. Soon after we left our home it dropped to 31. We have not measured it since beginning the de-tox protocol.

(The gastro-intestinal specialist who first saw Colin attributed his abdominal pain to stress. He didn't mention the high gliadin level. I asked for the lab results much later and noticed the 105 reading.)

Because of the implications of gliadin leakage all of us are following a gluten-free diet. It has helped Colin tremendously. All of us feel better on it.

One of the best articles I have read on intestinal issues related to mold exposure is found on the mold-survivor website.

Leaky Gut Syndrome Article