Grilled Artichoke with Aioli…And What Could Sinus Infections Have In Common With Cancer?

I bet you never heard those two ailments in the same sentence.  Neither had I until last year.  Writing this blog has given me the opportunity to meet and learn from some of the most intelligent minds in medicine.  After decades of battling my own bacterial and fungal sinus infections, my focus (as well as every doctors focus) had ALWAYS been on eradicating the bacteria.  It was as if the fungus didn’t even exist.  Boy, if I could go back 25 years and know then what I know now.  I don’t entirely blame this on the doctors as they are taught almost nothing about fungus in medical school, but are taught everything about bacteria.  Yes, we all know certain bacteria can be very dangerous and have to be dealt with, but fungus in it’s own right is dangerous.  For one, fungus spew mycotoxins (fungal poisons) and the particular fungus I had called Aspergillus spew mycotoxins called “aflotoxins”.  Aflotoxins are among the most carcinogenic substances known to man.  Yes, take your time to go back and read that again.  Does fungus still sound harmless?  The irony is the treatment for sinus infection is most commonly antibiotics, which are in fact mycotoxins (fungal poisons).  So essentially, you are trying to kill the bacteria by adding a hefty dose of fungal metabolites which only fuels the fungal infection.  Not sure if fungus can also be involved in your chronic sinusitis?  In 1999 the Mayo Clinic released their research findings and announced over 90% of all sinus infections are fungal in nature.  Then why does my sinus culture result come back showing bacteria you may ask?  Because bacteria are opportunistic!  Once the fungal mycotoxins have sufficiently suppressed your immune system, the bacteria has a chance to gain a foothold as well.

I also learned fungus mimics cancer in many ways.  Leading to question whether fungus causes cancer, or if cancer is a fungus.  Many doctors are starting to believe so.  Both cancer and fungus need sugar and carbohydrates to survive, they simply die without it.  Neither need oxygen, and where cancer is caused by genetic mutations, mycotoxins are known to cause genetic mutations. We are also hearing more and more about misdiagnosis of cancer, where upon further investigation the true diagnosis was fungus. If you think fungus can only wreak havoc in your sinuses, read about the many links fungus has to other diseases such as chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, reflux, neuropathy, Epstein Barr, and so much more.  Some of these diseases of which I had, only to dissipate once I introduced anti-fungals and started an anti-fungal diet.  Further convincing me of the role of fungus in my illness.

What my future holds as a result of being exposed to aflotoxins in my own body for decades is unknown. But, what I do know is this.  Both cancer and fungus need carbs and sugar to survive. So I plan on living a long healthy life eating in a fashion that does not make me a hospitable, most welcoming host for these deadly pathogens.

How can you reduce your risk of a fungal infection?  Fix any known leaks in your home, do not over use antibiotics, don’t drink excessive amounts of alcohol, and limit (if not completely disregard) foods known to contain mycotoxins like cereal, wheat, corn, alcohol, and peanuts.

If you are one of the millions that do have chronic sinusitis, I don’t have to tell you the treatment is complicated.  Chances are you have already had a surgery or two (4 in my case), endless rounds of antibiotics, steroids, allergy shots, and you are probably still sick.  Because I am not a doctor I cannot give medical advice.  But if I had a chance to talk to my teenage self when I came down with my first sinus infection it would be this.  Test your environment for mold and fix the issue.  Clean up your diet as to not feed fungus, take natural anti-fungals, buy a quality air filter, and do not take endless amounts of antibiotics and possibly unnecessary surgeries.  I would also visit websites like Know The Cause and learn everything I could about fungus (which I did).   I can’t go back in time, but hopefully I can spare many people the misery of the antibiotic/surgery hamster wheel so many of us find ourselves on.