Woman diagnosed with dementia after mold found in Sydney home

The relentless rains that have plagued Australia’s east coast over the past 18 months have left many residents keenly aware of how quickly mold can take hold in their homes and how difficult it is to get rid of. means that there is

Most people understand that mold is harmful to their health, but it’s difficult to know how much mold affects them until they experience it firsthand.

Amy Skilton One of the 25% of the population with genetic vulnerability to mycotoxins. That means exposure to mold can cause a huge inflammatory response in her body and even lead to organ damage.

But the 42-year-old discovered this five years ago after a terrifying experience in a moldy apartment in Manly.

Skilton, then 37, moved into the apartment with her now-husband in 2016.

At the time, she was “perfectly healthy”, had just completed a 9km fun run, had made two trips to the US to speak at two conferences, and delivered 39 keynotes in the six months before emigration. I was going

“Brain and body were fine,” Skilton, who works as a naturopathic doctor and nutritionist, told news.com.au.

What she and her partner didn’t know was that the shower’s waterproofing had been ruined during a recent renovation, resulting in water leaking under the carpet and out of the apartment every time it was used.

“In about two months, I started to get sick and became noticeably ill,” she explained.

“Maybe it took that long just because it was really sunny after summer.

The result of the covert mold problem was the “systematic breakdown” of Ms. Skilton’s body.

“The first symptoms I noticed were allergies, chronic allergies, and suddenly I gained 10 kilos,” she said.

“I am also a nutritionist and literally stayed the same weight my whole life.

Over the course of several months, her brain function also began to decline.

She had trouble concentrating and working, and when her illness was severe, she was referred to a neurologist and diagnosed with type 3 Alzheimer’s disease, also known as inhaled Alzheimer’s disease.

As it progressed, simple things like leaving home became daunting tasks. Because I forgot where my keys were and when I found them an hour later I had left my phone behind.

“Some days I didn’t know how to dress. I was really confused when I saw the clothes and how to wear them,” she said.

Mr. Skilton had a Vespa and used to go to the local store, but forgot where he parked it while he was out and when he finally found the bike, the keys were in the ignition.

But the scariest symptom she had was the day she couldn’t remember her own name.

“I went to fill out a form one day and I was staring at a box with my name on it and what was this? Na,” explained the fear of forgetting something.

She and the doctor she was seeing had no idea that mold was growing in her home, so all the tests they did came back fine.

She says mold-related affliction is one condition many medical professionals are untrained in, and most end up being diagnosed with things like chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia.

She said a normal blood test wasn’t enough to show what was really wrong.

“This is exactly what happened. Everything went back to normal, my white blood count was fine, my red blood cell count was fine,” said Skilton, who said most doctors swept her off and said nothing was wrong with her. Told.

“There was this black mold under the carpet.”

Ms Skilton said there were several coincidences at the same time to make her realize that her home could be the source of all the trouble.

Some people take years to be diagnosed, but she was diagnosed in a few months.

She started to realize that something was really wrong with her in February 2017, and by May the pennies had dropped.

What she first noticed was an online post from one of her friends describing how her husband had the mold gene. They found a leak in Bondi’s apartment that was causing mold and affecting his health.

This led Ms. Skilton to ask if a plumber could check the bathroom when she first moved in because she believed there was a leak in the garage below and possibly from the apartment strata. I remembered

Plumbers came and went, but they never heard anything again, so naturally she assumed everything was fine.

After she remembered this, Ms. Skilton called in a building biologist to assess the unit, which mapped the leak and discovered that water was coming from under the carpet to the bedroom and study. did.

“The carpet looked perfectly fine on top, but when she picked it up there was all this black mold. When we finally pulled the mattress cover off, the mattress was green,” she said. I got

When she confronted the property, they admitted that they knew the leak was coming from her apartment and had known about it for five months.

The owner was reportedly arguing with Strata all along about who should pay to fix the problem.

“So they left us there on purpose. That’s probably what pissed me off the most. They knew and it was poisoning us,” she said. rice field.

After knowing all this, Ms. Skilton was able to test for certain inflammatory markers and a specific group of genes encoded by something called human leukocyte antigens, which are appropriate.

When she returns the results of all these tests, she says, “Not only is the place leaky and moldy, but how do I know my genetics will decide when my immune system faces mold?” It became 100% clear that I responded with

Five years later, Skilton now lives in a leaky house in northern New South Wales. Her brain function has returned to normal, her energy has returned, and she no longer has the frightening symptoms she was experiencing.

She is now a certified Mold Test Technician and aims to use her knowledge to educate others.

The 42-year-old revealed that one of her clients had a horrific reaction over the years to mold exposure that left her in a coma for three years.

For years, this woman, who also has Lyme disease, lived in a house where the bathroom leaked through the bedroom wall.

A mold test revealed that the house contained not only huge amounts of mold, but also the most toxic strains.

She became ill as a teenager and eventually became disabled and slipped into a coma.

Ms Skilton had an affair with the woman when she was 27, but nutritionists said it was because her body had such a severe reaction to long-term mold exposure that it affected her development. , said that at first he thought he was a child.

What to do if you think you are reacting to mold toxins

Skillton said there are two main ways to tell if your home has a mold problem that affects your health.

“You can have an architectural biologist check your home, or you can ask a certified mold inspector to do it. We don’t do the rest of biology,” she explained.

You can also test whether you have genes that make you more susceptible to mold infections. This can usually be done for about $100 or $150, depending on the lab.

“You’re going to see a general practitioner. You’re going to want to see someone who’s an integrative general practitioner or who practices functional medicine,” Ms Skilton said.

While some cases of mold are more serious than others, there are some things you can do to help keep mold growing in your home.

Beaumont Tiles Adhesives and Tools Manager Trevor Grindley says bathroom silicones are a prime place for mold to start growing.

This can spread to grout lines, especially in wet areas like showers, because of the grout’s porous composition,” he said.

“If epoxy grout is not used, most other grout lines cannot resist mildew and mildew without the use of an impregnating sealer that can provide deep, permanent protection with an invisible finish.”

Grindley said bathroom additions such as underfloor heating can combat mold by keeping the bathroom dry.

“Ensuring proper ventilation is another way to combat mold,” said Grindley.

“If your bathroom has an exhaust fan or an open window, this will help prevent mold growth in your bathroom.”

first published as Hidden problems in Sydney home left ‘perfectly healthy’ woman with dementia