On many occasions, it may happen that we are going to consume a food and have mold in the outside area or, even, it has penetrated into the product. In this type of situation you have to be careful, since eating moldy foods can be harmful.
The presence of mold betrays the growth of a microorganism that can be detrimental to human health. In fact, consuming bacteria, fungi or protozoa can lead to poisoning or food poisoning.
These types of pathologies are based on the colonization of the digestive tract by invading microorganisms, or on the deposition of toxic waste products for health. Symptomatology, in many cases, is usually intestinal in nature. Vomiting, diarrhea and intestinal discomfort are quite frequent in these situations.
However, depending on the causative organism, the damages can be more serious. In this way, the liver can be affected, developing certain pathologies of a severe nature that cause serious complications in health.
Is it safe to remove mold from food?
Dry or low humidity foods can be consumed once the mold is removed from the outside. However, this process is not so simple in fleshy or moist, since fungi can spread into the product, causing a pathology after ingestion.
In case of doubt, it is always advisable to discard the food when detecting the presence of mold. There are certain exceptions, especially in the case of cheeses, where the appearance of molds or microorganisms does not usually present a health problem. However, these types of cases are the least frequent.
It should be noted that the presence of mold denotes the existence of a fungus on the outside and, possibly, inside the product. Fungal infections usually present a different symptomatology to those of a bacterial nature. In this case, the liver is more likely to be the affected organ.
In addition, liver toxicity due to the ingestion of molds has a cumulative nature, that is, it does not manifest symptoms until the amount of toxic in the organism is high enough to cause a severe injury.
Importance of proper food hygiene
To prevent the appearance of molds it is necessary to develop good food hygiene. Keeping food under the right temperature and humidity conditions is crucial. In addition, it is necessary to separate food to avoid cross contamination. Not handling different foods with the same utensils, especially in the case of raw and cooked food, also eliminates many risks.
On the other hand, it is essential not to break the cold chain and to defrost properly. The room temperature is not usually correct when defrosting food, it is advisable to perform this process in the refrigerator.
Exceeding the dates of preferential consumption of food also increases the likelihood that they will develop molds on the surface or house some type of pathological organism inside.
To minimize these risks, the industry uses preservative elements. On some occasions, these are natural, such as salt, sugar and vacuum packaging. In other situations, they resort to the use of chemical elements whose health consequences are not always clear in the long term.
This is one of the reasons why you should prioritize the consumption of fresh foods over processed foods, but always under the correct hygienic conditions.