Recently we received the following questions and comments. “Eating mouldy bread is discouraged. Where can I find the facts that prove this? Are there moulds that grow on bread that are harmless? Some of my patients that survived food shortages in The UK during World War II by eating mouldy bread and other foods insist that such fears about mould are unfounded”.

Why Is Eating Mouldy Food
Discouraged?
It is true that people may eat mouldy food without any harm. In many cases, children and adults who live on the streets in developing countries survive on food and fruits thrown into waste bins. Most of these foods and fruits are usually contaminated with mould and bacteria. The major reasons why eating mouldy food is dangerous is because such food is likely to be contaminated with mycotoxins (i.e., fungal poisons). Luckily, toxigenic moulds require certain growth conditions to produce the toxins and hence presence of these moulds on food does not necessarily mean the food contains mycotoxins. There is also a risk of food poisoning caused by bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella, Clostridium perfringens, Campylobacter, Listeria monocytogenes, Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Bacillus cereus, and Entero-pathogenic Escherichia coli.

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Do you have a mould question? Call us at (905)290-9101