Spores from *The Last of Us* will not cause an outbreak in Athens. Doctor Explains

In the news: The Last of Us has created a frenzy about food-borne fungal infections.

The good news: The chances of you becoming a clicker are zero!

The key point: Fungi in flour are somewhat common and can make people sick. Strains like Aspergillus and Fusarium have been making people sick for a long time. People who eat contaminated wheat can experience dizziness, headaches, and vomiting.

The main danger from fungi in flour is the production of mycotoxins.

Some symptoms of mycotoxin poisoning include hallucinations, delirium, and other neurologic distresses.

But, these poisonings won't make you into infected clickers!

Image courtesy: Screen Rant

We spoke to our team of health experts about the risks of fungi in our food.

The experts had an interesting response: instead of worrying about Clickers and contaminated wheat, people should know about the following fungal infections:

Dr. Uppal: Coccidioidomycosis, histoplasmosis, and blastomycosis are 3 fungal infections that can be very serious. These infections can be picked up from the soil and air.

Image: CDC

Dr. Bell: The scary thing is that these infections are often underdiagnosed because these fungal diseases mimic pneumonia or bronchitis.

People with lung diseases and immunocompromised states can actually die from these fungal infections.

Did you know that 11.6% of the adults living in Clarke County state they're not in good physical health? And 16.1% of the adults state that their mental health is not good.

Looking to improve your health?

Doctor's Insight about Fungal Infections

Next Steps: The World Health Organization has a comprehensive resource about mycotoxins. (Read it Here)

Living in Georgia, it's important for you to understand that mycotoxin poisoning is an issue of concern for your food supply. The FDA spends a lot of resources to ensure that the presence of mycotoxins in our food supply/chain is reduced.

"As an individual consumer, you generally cannot control the presence of mycotoxins in your food. The fungi that produce mycotoxins generally grow during crop production and storage--steps in the food supply chain that the FDA regulates and monitors to ensure the food available for you to buy is not contaminated. The mycotoxins in human food that the FDA currently focuses on are aflatoxins, deoxynivalenol, fumonisins, patulin, and ochratoxin A." FDA Statement on Mycotoxins.

Know this: Tremendous research occurs in better understanding mycotoxin poisoning in your food supply chain.

In Clarke County, 16.1% of adults have described not being in good mental health. And 35.3% of the adults report that they get less than 7 hours of sleep per night. These can lower your immune response.

What they're saying:

"Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites produced by microfungi that are capable of causing disease and death in humans and other animals. Because of their pharmacological activity, some mycotoxins or mycotoxin derivatives have found use as antibiotics, growth promotants, and other kinds of drugs. Still others have been implicated as chemical warfare agents." (Clinical Microbiology Reviews)

"Literature research focusing on up-to-date publications is providing a heterogenous picture of evidence and opinions regarding the role of mold and mycotoxins in the development of immune diseases."

Source:

The Journal Molecular Sciences published a review paper: Mold, Mycotoxins and a Dysregulated Immune System: A Combination of Concern? (Read it Here)

19.6% of Clarke County adults have some form of depression.

The Health Standard Newswire