Mold & Lyme
Did you know that mold exposure is one of the main factors in unresolvable chronic Lyme disease?
Over 300,000 new cases of Lyme are diagnosed in the United States every year (1). Of those cases, many of them resolve quickly, but for some people, the infection becomes chronic. How strong your immune system is plays a critical role in the body’s ability to resolve Lyme infections. When a person is exposed to mold spores or mycotoxins, it wreaks havoc on their body, creating a constant state of systemic inflammation, and distracting the immune system from addressing other infections.
How Does Mold Affect Lyme Disease?
Not only does mold exposure make a person more susceptible to Lyme disease by lowering immune function, it can make chronic Lyme nearly impossible to resolve. If a person is using protocols involving antibiotics or antibacterial herbs to address Lyme, and not underlying internal colonization or environmental exposure of mold spores and mycotoxins, they may be unable to overcome the symptoms of Lyme disease.
Likewise, having chronic Lyme disease can make a person more susceptible to the negative consequences of mold exposure. If one person in a family living in a moldy home has Lyme disease, all the other members of the household may not experience any symptoms of mold toxicity, however the person with lowered immunity due to Lyme will likely suffer exponentially in the moldy environment.
Diagnosing Mold or Lyme
It is often difficult to make a diagnosis of mold or Lyme disease, as many of the symptoms are similar including:
Headaches
Mood swings
Neurological issues
Brain fog
Chronic fatigue
Muscle pain
Joint pains
Chronic Lyme and mold exposure are found together so often that many consider them to be “co-conditions”. Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS) and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) are often blanket terms applied for these symptoms. These conditions are frequently caused by Lyme disease and/or mold exposure, which can be referred to as "Biotoxin illnesses", as the biotoxins released by these pathogenic organisms cause systemic inflammation leading to chronic illness. It is estimated that 25% of the population, meaning over 80 million Americans, has mutations in the HLA-DR/DQ (human leukocyte antigens) genes which makes a person’s immune system much more susceptible to the ravages of biotoxins. (2) Both mold and Lyme initiate the same inflammatory pathways in the body. Blood levels of low MSH paired with high levels of high C4A, MMP-9, and TGF b-1 are common in biotoxin illness, and one way to help determine if that is the cause of a person's issues. Cognitive decline is frequently seen with both mold and Lyme; these levels of blood markers are also often found in Alzheimer’s disease, which may be triggered by biotoxin illness! (3)
While it can be quite difficult to differentiate if symptoms are related primarily to mold or to Lyme disease, there are some subtle differences. Mold symptoms stay relatively consistent no matter what, but become worse in wet or humid climates and seasons. People often experience burning itching eyes, irritated throat and sinuses, wheezing, coughing, digestive complaints, static shock, neuropathies with tingling numbness, depression to the point of despair, and depression that increases with herxing during detoxification if the detox and drainage pathways are not properly supported.
The symptoms of chronic Lyme are much more like a see-saw, with flaring of symptoms. One day a person may feel fine, and absolutely tank and crash the next day. The immune system may mount a response that knocks down the infectious load, but then it may rebound with a vengeance. Lyme disease and co-infections are much more dynamic than mold, contributing to the rollercoaster of symptoms.
Find a Functional Medicine Practitioner
Most conventional doctors will not run labs on people who suspect they have mold toxicity or chronic Lyme disease, so it is important to find a Lyme and mold literate MD or functional medicine practitioner to guide you through this. I use antibody and PCR DNA lab testing such as Igenex, Vibrant Wellness, or DNA Connexions for Lyme and co-infections. Great Plains MycoTox urine test assesses levels of 11 different mycotoxins from various mold species found both ingested in food and inhaled in mold environments, while the Organic Acid Test can pick up on metabolic byproducts produced by Aspergillus mold colonizing inside of the body. The ERMI (Environmental Relative Moldy Index) test is the gold standard for assessing moldy homes and can be helpful in identifying the types and concentration of mold present in your environment. Specialized blood tests for MSH, C4a, TGF b-1, and MMP-9 can help confirm biotoxin illness, while genetic testing can check for genetic susceptibility through HLA gene mutations.
What Do You Address First?
In my clinical experience, when it comes to figuring out which condition to address first, I recommend my clients address mold and Lyme disease in order of priority, based off whichever symptoms are presenting more issues in their life. Often, I begin with addressing the more pressing issue, then rotating protocols to reduce the toxic burden of each condition, until the body is able to bring the immune system back online and fight off mold and Lyme on its own! Check out my other articles on Lyme disease and mold for ideas on how I address each of these. If you are treating one condition and it is not resolving, addressing the other condition may be the key to regaining your health!