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You're all ready to make the sandwich of your dreams.
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Turkey, tomato, and Swiss on a bed of romaine lettuce sandwiched between two slices of sourdough.
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Classic, but oh no!
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What's this? Mold? Ugh.
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But look, good news, the mold's only on part of the bread so I could just cut that away and be fine, right?
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There's no such thing as a clean part of moldy bread.
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That's because mold is a fungus like mushrooms.
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The caps on the surface are easy enough to spot, but there's a vast network of subterranean roots called hyphae that you can't see.
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So let's take another look at that bread of yours.
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Ugh, disgusting.
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Well, maybe you can just grab another piece from the same loaf.
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Well, that's not such a good idea, either.
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Because by the time the mold sprouts its fuzzy head, what you're really seeing is the reproductive part of the mold called sporangiums.
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Each sporangium releases tens of thousands of spores, so even though you can't see it, that entire loaf could be teeming with fungus.
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But it seems like such a waste to just throw it out.
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After all, you eat mold on purpose all the time like the mold that goes into making cheese, soy sauce, and even life-saving antibiotics like penicillin.
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Eating a little bit on your bread can't be that bad, right?
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Well, ultimately, it's a gamble.
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Just like eating a wild mushroom.
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Many are fine, but some can be deadly.
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Mold is the same way.
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There are thousands of different species of mold, many of which are harmless to humans.
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But since so many types can sprout up on food, it's nearly impossible to know if what you're eating is safe.
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Cladosporium, for example, can sometimes trigger allergies but is generally harmless, whereas other molds like Penicillium Crustosum produce harmful poisons called Mycotoxins.
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An elderly couple in 2005, for example, was admitted to the hospital after eating a can of soup contaminated with this kind of mold.
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They had severe muscle tremors but eventually recovered.
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But other molds, like Rhizopus Stolonifer, can have permanent effects, and you might recognize this mold since it commonly grows on bread.
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Blue green with black splotches and super fuzzy.
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In rare cases, it can prompt a deadly infection called Zygomycosis, which causes your blood to clot and can ultimately starve your cells of oxygen to the point that they die.
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And it's not like bacteria, where a little heat will eliminate the threat, because high temperatures won't break down the Mycotoxins.
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And since you have no clue which one you're about to put in your mouth, ask yourself: is it really worth the risk?
