Living near the beach has its perks but mold ain't one.

Last week, I caught up with Kim, a former Lifetime Water & Wellness member, about her long road back from mold toxicity. Years ago, she was thriving, a healthy yoga studio owner, but hidden behind her condo walls was a toxic intruder: mold. What followed was years of unexplained symptoms, misdiagnoses, and a health journey that felt like climbing Mt. Everest. Sadly, Kim’s story isn't the only one I’ve heard over the years.

If you’ve been battling allergies that don’t go away, skin issues, sugar cravings, brain fog, autoimmune flares, or gut disturbances, there could be a hidden culprit:

Mold. Fungus. Yeasts. Candida.

And they’re all part of what we now call the mycobiome, a fungal ecosystem living in and around you.

Why Mold Matters (Even If Your House Seems Fine)

I interviewed mold expert Jason Earle, founder of Got Mold?, who shared startling facts about how indoor mold can impact immune function, inflammation, and chronic illness. Even if you don’t see visible mold, here’s why it deserves your attention:

• Indoor air is often 2–5x more polluted than outdoor air, even on “normal” days

• 47% of U.S. homes have a moisture or mold problem of significance

• You breathe in 30 lbs of air per day, and 90% of that is indoors

• Mold can mimic or exacerbate conditions like MCAS, Lyme, thyroid dysfunction, or gut dysbiosis

• Genetics matter: If you carry HLA, CYP1A2, or GSTP1 variants, your ability to detox mold may be impaired

Your home is more than a structure; it’s an extension of your immune system.
And you can’t supplement or fast your way out of an air quality issue. Watch the 40-minute interview with Jason: HERE.

🚩 Symptoms That May Be Fungal-Related

Functional practitioners are now connecting the dots between environmental fungi and a range of chronic symptoms like never before:

• Persistent fatigue or brain fog

• Sugar or carb cravings

• Skin rashes, eczema, or fungal infections (nails, scalp, body)

• Histamine intolerance or MCAS

• Autoimmune flares (Hashimoto’s, Celiac, Lupus, RA)

• Bloating, SIBO, or unexplained gut inflammation

• Anxiety, mood swings, or sleep disturbance

While bacteria get most of the microbiome attention, fungi are only 0.1% of your microbiota, but the mycobiome plays an equally critical role in chronic health outcomes. Check out a prior blog post, where I discuss what I got right and what I got wrong about my fungal journey.

What You Can Do About It

Whether you rent, own, or live in a beach town or the desert, indoor air quality is essential to long-term health. Start here:

✅ Check out my Total Toxin Checklist

Your guide to evaluating mold, water damage, and toxin sources at home.

🧪 Order a Home Test Kit (10% Off or Use HSA)

Test your air quality — because if you can’t see it or smell it, you still might be breathing it.

🌀 Explore the Gut Detox Course

This is the exact course Kim used to restore her life and gut health. It’s part of my Back to Best program — designed to complement medical care with functional tools, especially if you’re facing mold illness, Candida overgrowth, or autoimmunity.

Final Thoughts: Fix the Terrain, Not Just the Fungus

The latest research in functional medicine is clear: with fungi, fixing the internal terrain is more effective than trying to kill everything off. This means addressing the conditions that allow mold and Candida to thrive, such as poor detox, chronic inflammation, or imbalanced gut flora.

The mycobiome isn’t a trend, it’s a missing piece in the chronic illness puzzle.
And awareness, not fear, is where healing starts.

Sources:

• Bland, J. (2025). The Gut Mycobiome: A Central Figure in Health and Disease

• Davis, W. (2022). Super Gut

• Kaufmann, D. (2018). The Fungus Link to Women's Health Problems

• O’Bryan, T. (2018). You Can Fix Your Brain

• Sarna, S. (2021). Healing SIBO

• Adalsteinsson et al., (2020). Experimental Dermatology