Shilpa Sayana, MD, explains why some people are more vulnerable to toxins like heavy metals and mold. Genetic differences in detoxification ability determine how much damage toxins cause, triggering anxiety, depression, and insomnia by disrupting hormones and neurotransmitters.
So toxic burdens, as I referred to before, we do check a lot of toxins here, heavy metals, organic pollutants, and mold and mycotoxins. And it depends on your genetics. So a lot of times I have a couple, a man and a woman, come in, and the husband has all the symptoms and she has none, or vice versa. It all depends on your genetics. How do you genetically detoxify if you have the capacity to make a lot of antioxidants and detoxify? Well, you may not have any symptoms, even though you're living in the same household where there might be mold or there might be another toxin you're exposed to. So for those who are genetically susceptible, toxins are both endocrine disruptors and neurotransmitter disruptors. So they impact your hormones, and they can impact your mood in terms of anxiety, depression, and cause insomnia.
