How Mold, Metals and More are Driving Alzheimer’s Disease and other Chronic Illnesses

Awakening to find my husband, Rick, speaking strangely and not acting at all like the man I had known for more than 30 years, terrified me. At 59, he was rarely sick, but now he experienced severe tremors, a crushing headache, nasty rash, gut-wrenching pain, and an array of strange symptoms, seemingly overnight. Suspended in a world without answers, his mainstream team of specialists was unable to precisely diagnose his mysterious condition.

It would take years to get to the bottom of those symptoms, ultimately revealing multiple root causes and chronic inflammation linked to many of today’s health conditions. “The epidemics (barely acknowledged by conventional medicine) of chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, autism, dementia, autoimmune illness, cancer, mold toxicity, and Lyme disease all share a common theme: inflammation created by an immune system that has been overstimulated and does not know how to correct itself,” says Dr. Neil Nathan in his book, Toxic.

Eventually through precision biomarkers developed by Dr. Ritchie Shoemaker, a pioneer in mold research devoted to the evaluation and treatment of illnesses caused from mold, ticks, and other biological agents, we gained new insights. About 25% of the population has a genetic predisposition that makes them more sensitive to mold illness. With compromised genetics, these inflammatory agents continually wreak havoc on the immune system, endlessly firing up symptoms.

Further testing confirmed excessive inflammatory exposures from metals, including lead, aluminum, mercury, and cadmium. Additionally, other hazardous chemical exposures from two decades living adjacent to his father’s leather tannery contributed to Rick’s lifetime toxic burden.

Once toxicity was identified, Rick was prescribed a rigorous detox protocol. However, his genetics still jeopardized his chances for full recovery. His body and brain were extremely inflamed.

We were getting closer to the true picture, but Rick’s traditional doctors rejected the notion that toxins were responsible for his rapid deterioration and personality and behavioral changes. Unfortunately, as I’d later learn most doctors don’t have the training to identify them.

A startling realization struck me: Could there be legions of people undergoing traditional tests that don’t reveal underlying issues, yet still suffer from undiagnosed root causes?  What if the roots of their illnesses were evaluated or treated with therapies that might change their health destinies? With environmental exposures so prevalent now, why aren’t traditionally treated patients being tested for them?

From neuropsychological tests, doctors then suspected frontotemporal dementia, affecting behavior and executive function. Years later, a neurologist diagnosed Rick with Lewy body dementia, a degenerative neurological condition. A year after Rick’s death, more answers were revealed in The End of Alzheimer’s by Dr. Dale Bredesen and later in consultation with him. His traits, symptoms, and biochemical markers exactly mirrored those of a type of Alzheimer’s with toxicity as a specific root cause. Lewy body dementia and Type 3 (toxic) Alzheimer’s, as identified in Bredesen’s research, share many similarities.

Alzheimer’s is not one condition as often treated, but three subtypes, each with distinctive characteristics. Environmental factors and toxic exposures are suspect as dementogens, a term used to describe toxic agents that may lead to cognitive decline. Type 3 is associated with toxic exposure, genetic predisposition, and other factors. These patients are geneti­cally compromised to properly detoxify, triggering the cascade of autoimmune responses and biochemical assaults on the body and brain from inflamma­tion.

“Type 3 Alzheimer’s disease is the result of exposure to specific toxins . . . a manifestation of chronic inflammatory response syndrome, due to biotoxins such as mycotoxins,” states Bredesen.  Now, by exploring toxicity as a potential factor in patients with cognitive decline offers the opportunity for successful treatment whose prognoses otherwise would be grave.

Proven protocols outlined by Bredesen’s team, e.g. detoxification, hormone balancing, and lifestyle interventions of diet, exercise, stress management, sleep and others, have been dramatically reversing cognitive decline for more than a decade! In the 2021 study addressing risk factors for dementia, “Precision Medicine Approach to Alzheimer’s Disease,” cognitive testing of participants revealed an 84% improvement at the conclusion of the nine-month clinical trial.

These precision evaluations and protocols currently available through functional medicine have forged a new paradigm of care. They hold more than promise for taming inflammation, reversing cognitive decline, recovery from chronic illnesses, as well as offering preventive measures for revolutionizing wellness for us all.

Excerpted from her latest book, A Toxic Brain—Revelations from a Health Journey, featuring the author’s fervent search for answers regarding her husband’s bizarre symptoms and all the unexpected realities of navigating his debilitating illness. Sandra Strauss is passionate to inspire destinies of health, harmony, and happiness. She offers a collection of strategies in her books, presentations, and blog to support vibrant health and wellbeing, http://www.SandraStrauss.com.