These Common Diseases Aren't Real, Expert Says

For every health issue discussed, there is a wellness guru trying to monetize it. Undiagnosed skin rashes, fatigue, and bloating are some examples of common conditions that leave vulnerable people seeking answers. We looked into the evidence behind controversial conditions exploited by the wellness industry: toxic mold syndrome, chronic Lyme disease, and leaky gut.

Dr. Andrea Love, an immunologist and microbiologist, recently shared a list of what she called "pseudoscience diagnoses" spread by wellness folks.

"The wellness industry makes a lot of money attributing vague symptoms to these buzzy-sounding phrases selling products claiming to diagnose or treat them," Love wrote on X, a social media platform.

Although the wellness economy in the United States is now valued at $1.8 trillion, the dollars spent on health don't slow down the rates of major chronic diseases.

"It's never a situation in which we're saying people are lying about how they're feeling. But what happens is that many of these unsupported medical diagnoses exploit their vulnerability and the frustration," Love tells Healthnews.

Toxic mold syndrome

Mold exposure is common, as nearly half (47%) of all homes in the U.S. have some mold or dampness. In some people, mold can cause allergy-like symptoms like stuffy nose, coughing, or skin rash, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Some individuals claim exposure to mold causes much more serious health issues. For example, the controversial toxic mold syndrome refers to a group of respiratory, cognitive, and muscle aches supposedly caused by exposure to indoor black mold.

However, critics argue that the symptoms are usually vague and subjective and can be impossible to measure or quantify. They say there is no evidence that the presence of mycotoxins — toxic substances produced by mold — in the air is enough to cause a disease. However, molds legitimately can cause allergies and trigger asthma.

"The existence of toxic mold syndrome has been disproven, despite the numerous disreputable practices such as testing homes for mold spores, measuring 'mycotoxins' in the urine, and testing patients for IgG to mold," the authors of a 2019 study wrote.

They also suggest that toxic mold syndrome is a nocebo effect of visible black mold and not a real subject of public health concern.

Love says most molds are completely harmless to humans, although some produce chemicals called mycotoxins or aflatoxins, which at certain levels can lead to harmful side effects. These chemicals are especially concerning when ingested, for example, with incorrectly stored grains or nuts that have molds on them.

"There is no evidence to suggest that molds circulating in the air have high levels of mycotoxins, so breathing them would cause toxic mold illness," Love says.

Speaking of tests to detect mold presence indoors, Love points out that every house will have fungi circulating because they float in through an open window or door. These tests won't say that this mold is not a health concern.

Individuals shouldn't rely on urine tests analyzing mold components either. Most people intentionally eat products that have fungi in them, such as cheese, yogurt, or miso.

Urine is a waste product. If you eat anything that has molds in them, like blue cheese, and drink beer, you're going to pee those compounds out. It has nothing to do with what you're being exposed to in your home.

Love

Despite the lack of evidence, some individuals who are tired of feeling unwell may find the toxic mold syndrome to be an appealing explanation for their health issues.

"About 30% of the adult population has chronic fatigue, and 15% has chronic pain. It's a large population that could be targeted and preyed upon," Love says.

Some scientists are examining the role of mycotoxins in contributing to or worsening autoimmune conditions like rheumatoid arthritis or inflammatory bowel disease. Thus far, there is little human data to support that.

Chronic Lyme disease

About 476,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed and treated for Lyme disease each year, an illness caused by the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi and spread by black-legged ticks.

Some patient advocacy groups like the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS) call for acknowledging chronic Lyme disease (CLD), which refers to prolonged symptoms that are not typical of the infection, such as chronic pain, fatigue, neurocognitive and behavioral issues.

The organization argues that the lack of recognition of Lyme Disease as chronic causes many medical providers to miss the condition and misdiagnose individuals with fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, and depression.

However, the CDC and many Northern American and European medical societies discourage the term CLD because it implies that prolonged symptoms are caused by an ongoing bacterial infection when the cause is unknown. According to the CDC, the condition should be called post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome (PTLDS).

Love, executive director of the American Lyme Disease Foundation, says there's a very complex and insidious network within the Lyme disease world. This network includes medical doctors who are not infectious disease specialists and non-accredited professionals like naturopaths and chiropractors who work with patient advocacy groups.

Love says these patient advocacy groups promote the idea that Lyme is a more serious health danger than it actually is. They cite studies in animals and those examining fragments of bacteria instead of actual living bacteria.

She adds, "There's no clinical evidence that after a course of antibiotics, there are any residual bacteria that are causing Lyme disease. There's no evidence to suggest that there's a persistent infection and that you need to continue to take treatments for it."

Meanwhile, PTLDS means that there are some residual impacts of the infection, and the symptoms last beyond the presence of the actual pathogen. Individuals may experience symptoms because it takes time for the immune system to fully return to its base state.

Geetha Parthasarathy, a scientist at the Tulane National Primate Research Center and an assistant professor of microbiology and immunology at the Tulane School of Medicine, says recognizing chronic Lyme could lead to more research investment to determine the cause of prolonged symptoms.

She says, "This would lead to novel ultra-sensitive diagnostics and novel supplementary treatments, and more individualized care."

Leaky gut syndrome

From diets to supplements, the wellness industry has plenty of solutions for fixing leaky gut syndrome, also called increased intestinal permeability, where bacteria and toxins leak through the intestinal wall. Leaky gut syndrome is blamed for diarrhea, bloating, constipation, and fatigue, among other symptoms.

However, the condition is not officially recognized, and critics say that a leaky gut is a symptom of gastrointestinal diseases rather than the underlying cause that develops independently. Conditions like Crohn's and Celiac disease cause inflammation in the intestines, leading to the gradual erosion of the intestinal barrier.

Most importantly, the intestinal barrier isn't and shouldn't be completely impenetrable because it allows the uptake of essential nutrients, electrolytes, and water.

Love says the wellness industry created the false idea that people generally have leaky guts, where toxins and bacteria enter their bloodstream. Such a diagnosis often leads to the need to detox and reduce inflammation, although the immune system can do it on its own.

"They use it to sell supplements, rigid dietary protocols, and tests that don't have any evidence to support them, claiming that they're going to diagnose leaky gut phenomenon," Love adds.

Why is believing in these conditions dangerous?

Love says that people who buy into medical conditions that are not real ignore the actual causes of their symptoms. This leads them to forgo appropriate and accurate diagnoses and real treatments.

Additionally, treatments for pseudoscience diagnoses often involve unregulated interventions like detoxes and chelation therapy, restrictive diets, and alternative treatments, such as bentonite clay. Because they are unregulated, they pose immediate health risks.

"There's no evidence to prove that they're safe beyond the fact that there's no evidence that they're effective," she adds.

Moreover, some supplements or their use tendencies can cause kidney damage, liver damage, and gastrointestinal issues, as well as interfere with medications and the absorption of essential nutrients.

While these conditions are not officially recognized, this doesn't mean that people are imagining their symptoms. If you are experiencing prolonged health issues, find a healthcare provider who listens and dedicates time to finding the underlying cause.