Common Symptoms and Concerns Addressed

Under the right conditions, your immune system can turn against your own body. Hashimoto's, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, lupus — these conditions all have a root cause. Remission is possible. Let's find it.

No Pill Can Fix This

Autoimmune conditions can be broadly defined as an immune system that has begun attacking the body's own tissue. It's not a great situation—the army meant to protect you has turned against you.

In conventional medicine, immune-suppressing drugs are the standard prescription for most autoimmune conditions. There's a catch, however: these drugs don't redirect the immune system, they simply slow it down. That's not to say they aren't useful–they can be quite helpful during acute episodes–but they don't address the core of the problem, which is immune system dysfunction. Identifying what triggered that dysfunction in the first place is the true key to healing.

The Four Triggers of Autoimmunity

The four most researched triggers of autoimmunity are infections (bacterial, viral, fungal, etc.), toxins (heavy metals, mold, BPAs, etc.), dietary proteins such as gluten and dairy, and emotional trauma. Every autoimmune case is different, and any one — or all — of these triggers may be at play. For those living in the southeastern US, it is especially important to rule out mold exposure and tick-borne illness as primary drivers.

Complex and Misdiagnosed

Autoimmunity is notoriously complex–the average autoimmune patient sees 20 doctors before receiving the correct diagnosis. In the meantime, the immune system continues to wage war on healthy tissue. Expanded autoimmune panel testing is available and requires nothing more than a simple blood draw.

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Neuroinflammation, neurological autoimmunity, glial cells, and unaddressed traumatic brain injury (TBI) — understanding these is the key to real brain recovery.

Brain Fog = Neuroinflammation

By far the most common neurological symptom is brain fog. Many of us dismiss it as normal, especially as we age, but brain fog is quite literally inflammation inside the brain — a sign that something is wrong. It can have many causes and is often just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to neurological dysfunction. Mild, occasional brain fog may result from something minor like a poor night's sleep, but persistent or severe brain fog signals that the brain is under considerable stress.

Neurological Autoimmunity

Perhaps the most serious category of neurological conditions falls under the umbrella of neurological autoimmunity. Many people are familiar with the most well-known example, multiple sclerosis (MS), but there are many other manifestations. What these conditions share is a common mechanism: the immune system is attacking the brain and/or nervous system tissue. In other words, the body is turning against its own most sensitive tissue. In the short term, many people rely on medications for relief, but the long-term solution is to address what is disrupting the immune system in the first place, while simultaneously working to protect the brain itself.

As with all forms of autoimmunity, four categories of triggers must be considered: infections, food sensitivities (such as gluten, dairy, and others), toxins (mold, BPAs, heavy metals, etc.), and emotional stress or trauma. Thanks to Cyrex Labs, accurate testing now exists for many of these potential triggers. Once identified, a personalized care plan can be developed.

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)

Undiagnosed brain injuries from past trauma are surprisingly common in functional medicine. They often present as brain fog, fatigue, and exaggerated reactions to seemingly minor stressors — for example, someone who feels devastated after a single poor night of sleep, or who experiences a three-day hangover from one glass of alcohol. Even dementia or memory loss can sometimes trace back to an old TBI. If you have ever hit your head, even in a minor way, the cells beneath the site of impact may remain permanently on edge, prone to overreacting to a wide range of triggers. Identifying what is activating these damaged, or "primed," cells is essential to recovery as well as rehabbing the dysfunctional areas of the brain.

Primed Glial Cells

The primary cells responsible for managing inflammation in the brain are called glial cells. When these cells are damaged, they become "primed"—a state in which they are never fully at rest and remain on perpetual high alert. Rather than responding proportionally to genuine threats, primed glial cells stay in attack mode even when none exists, potentially generating an enormous and ongoing inflammatory response. In any neurological case, assessing glial cell function is critical to preventing further degeneration of the brain and nervous system

Gut Issues: The Problem, or a Symptom of the Problem?

The gut is heavily intertwined with virtually all conditions and diseases, but is it always the origin of the problem? Some in the functional medicine space believe so. And while I agree that gut dysfunction is incredibly common and must be addressed, it is far more important to first identify what is causing the gut problem itself. Parasites, SIBO, and other infections certainly play a role in producing a wide array of health issues — but what if the GI symptoms are being driven by dysfunction in the brain, the lungs, or the liver? When that underlying cause is identified and treated, more rapid and lasting resolution of GI symptoms becomes possible.

North to South: A Critical Strategy for Gut Health

Gut issues must be addressed in a hierarchical order that follows the anatomical layout of the gastrointestinal tract. Simply put, the GI problem that is highest up — furthest "north" — must be treated before targeting symptoms arising lower in the tract. The stomach, for example, should be addressed before, or at minimum simultaneously with, a parasite living in the large intestine, assuming both areas are problematic. Consistently, this top-down treatment approach leads to more permanent results.

GI Testing

GI testing can feel incomplete and unreliable — false negatives are common, and routine bloodwork rarely tells the full story. In many GI cases, standard labs offer very little actionable information. A number of functional medicine tests are better suited to assess gut health, namely stool tests and organic acid urine tests. These can be expensive, but they provide a wealth of useful data. My approach is to use diagnostic testing when budget allows, combined with a thorough patient history, symptom questionnaires, and manual muscle testing to determine the best starting point for each individual case.

The most underdiagnosed condition in the southeastern United States — perhaps the entire country — mold illness is complex and can be devastating.

What is mold illness? Symptoms and more.

Mold illness is caused by toxins called mycotoxins, which are released by many indoor mold species. The symptom picture can be quite muddled, which is a key reason mold illness remains so underdiagnosed. By muddled, I mean that mycotoxins can affect every organ and tissue in the body. Common symptoms include brain fog, fatigue, GI dysfunction such as nausea, bloating, vomiting, and diarrhea, as well as neurological issues like nerve pain, numbness, and tingling — and even cardiovascular problems such as heart palpitations and hypertension. The list goes on, because virtually any symptom can stem from mold when every organ and tissue is potentially affected.

The average person suffering from mold illness has approximately 20 symptoms. Traditional medical specialists — cardiologists, neurologists, endocrinologists — are often puzzled by how one patient can present with so many different complaints. As a result, mold patients frequently receive treatment for individual pieces of their symptom picture, or worse, their extensive list of complaints leads the physician to conclude — and often say — that it's all in their head, followed by a referral for a psychological evaluation. Thyroid hormone may be prescribed for abnormal lab values, or pharmaceuticals administered for neuropathy. But the central question is almost never asked: why are all of these problems happening in the first place? The answer is often mold illness.

What types of patients do you treat?

Exploring potential mold illness is relevant for everyone. Mold symptoms can be subtle, and many people have no idea they are being affected — symptoms are often dismissed as normal aging. That said, if you are experiencing severe symptoms with no identified cause, it is critical that you be evaluated for mold toxicity by a functional medicine doctor. This is especially important for those with neurological dysfunction or disease, cardiovascular issues, or a diagnosis of Lyme disease, as complete resolution of Lyme is nearly impossible when mold is present and unaddressed.

Think you might have mold toxicity or would like to discuss further with Dr. Cole? Click here to schedule your free consultation.

What does mold treatment look like, and how long does it take?

Treating mold illness begins with identifying the problem. For testing, I prefer the Vibrant America Mycotoxin Panel. A positive result in this urine test initiates a multi-step treatment process: first, identifying the source of mold exposure — most commonly the home, workplace, or car — followed by a detoxification strategy to clear mycotoxins from the body, and then an antifungal protocol to eliminate any mold growth within the body (see next section). Treatment length depends on two factors: the overall health of the patient and the level of toxin burden present. Based on these variables, treatment can range from 4 to 18 months. The good news is that meaningful improvement is typically seen within the first eight weeks.

Is it possible to have mold illness without a known exposure?

Unfortunately, yes. Mold problems are often hiding in plain sight — or rather, out of it entirely. Mycotoxins are odorless and can exist in areas invisible to the naked eye, such as inside walls and other enclosed spaces. More importantly, mold can persist inside the body long after an initial exposure. As unlikely as it sounds, inhaled mold spores can take up residence in the sinuses or GI tract, meaning the body may effectively be poisoning itself from within. As renowned mold specialist Neil Nathan, MD, writes in his book Toxic, this is far from rare: he notes that some of the sickest mold patients he has encountered had been out of any known mold environment for a decade.