If you’re a parent navigating eczema flares, recurring dental issues, or tummy troubles with your child—and nothing seems to stick long-term—you’re not alone. Have you tried switching up foods, cleaning up bath products, eliminating dyes and additives, maybe even explored probiotics or gut-healing protocols… but the symptoms persist?
What if I told you the root cause might be something deeper, quieter, and often missed in conventional care?
When the detox pathways are overwhelmed—especially in little ones—certain toxins can silently build up and disrupt everything from the gut to the immune system to the skin.
Case Study
That’s exactly what happened for a one-year-old boy whose parents came to us after months of watching their son struggle. His eczema had been present since birth—what began as a small rash on his cheeks quickly escalated into a full-body flare after a common cold. His mom had already been eating a clean, nourishing diet while breastfeeding, and began eliminating even more foods in hopes of easing his symptoms. As he transitioned to solids, she remained extremely cautious, but nothing seemed to help.
She had tried every cream and lotion she could find—natural and conventional—but instead of soothing his skin, they left him more inflamed. His skin would turn bright red and irritated after his nightly baths, and the itching was relentless. Alongside the eczema, he was also struggling with constipation—a sign his gut was under stress. As he grew, she was noticing more sensory-seeking behavior from him to include crashing, banging his head, and big emotional outbursts—all of which she hoped were just a normal part of his childhood that he would grow out of soon.
Then came the moment that stopped her in her tracks: as his baby teeth began to emerge, she noticed signs of decay. He had never eaten sugar, and she was shocked. When she brought it up to his doctor, the only explanation offered was a vague comment about breastfeeding. No real answers. No plan forward.
She was exhausted, heartbroken, and losing hope. Her little boy wasn’t sleeping, his skin was raw and painful, and now his teeth were showing signs of stress, too. She felt like she was doing everything right—and yet, his health was slipping away in front of her eyes.
We decided together to run two non-invasive tests to get answers for their family once and for all. These two labs help us uncover both the internal terrain (the gut) and the toxic load burdening the system—two core pillars we assess in nearly every complex case. The first was a GI MAP Stool Analysis to assess the status of his microbiome – both good and harmful bacteria, yeast, and parasites. The second was a Total Tox Burden test to assess toxin accumulation, primarily for mycotoxins from mold as our main suspect based on his symptoms.
His results revealed elevated levels of sixteen different mycotoxins.
Mycotoxins are toxic compounds produced by mold. They’re found in water-damaged homes, contaminated food (especially grains, coffee, and dairy), and even some pharmaceuticals. These toxins and the fungus that produced them can also be transferred in utero to children, wreaking havoc on developing systems.
While we won’t discuss them in depth, this child did also have elevated levels of a number of heavy metals and industrial chemicals indicated on his test results, as well as a bacterial and parasitic overgrowth indicated on stool testing and symptom presentation. Each of these toxins can contribute to inflammation, immune dysregulation, and microbiome disruption—three root causes we see in eczema, dental decay, and digestive issues.
Let’s break it down symptom by symptom.
GI Issues: Where It All Starts
So much of our health begins in the gut—and so do many of our symptoms. In this case, he was experiencing constipation which meant that he was unable to effectively eliminate toxins on a routine basis, leading to toxins being reabsorbed into the bloodstream instead of eliminated—adding more pressure on his system.
The mycotoxins indicated on his testing damage the gut lining, contributing to what’s often called “leaky gut.” When the gut barrier breaks down, it allows food particles, toxins, and pathogens to enter the bloodstream. This can trigger widespread immune responses, including eczema flares and inflammation in other areas of the body. While food sensitivities were part of his picture, this helped explain why they couldn’t seem to find a real pattern in food reactions.
These mycotoxins also shift the microbiome—reducing beneficial bacteria and allowing harmful microbes to overgrow like bacteria, parasites, and yeast. That dysbiosis can show up as tummy aches, mood swings, food sensitivities, and nutrient deficiencies. These imbalances from mycotoxin burden can lead to poor appetite, nutritional deficiencies such an iron anemia, poor immune constitution, and plateaus in growth.
Eczema: The Skin’s Way of Telling Us Something’s Off Internally
Eczema is often a red flag for internal inflammation—an SOS signal from the body.
His results showed high levels of Ochratoxin A, a mycotoxin known to suppress immune function and increase inflammation. It stimulates cytokines like IL-6 and TNF-alpha—chemicals the immune system uses in response to threat. But when these are constantly elevated, inflammation becomes chronic. As a result, the immune system may mount a response to things that are otherwise benign, such as food or environmental allergens.
Trichothecenes, produced by molds like Fusarium, are potent inhibitors of protein synthesis and directly damage the intestinal lining. This can lead to increased intestinal permeability—or what’s commonly called “leaky gut.” When the gut lining is compromised, undigested food particles, pathogens, and toxins can pass into the bloodstream.
This sets off systemic inflammation and immune dysregulation, two key drivers behind eczema. Mycotoxins can also paradoxically trigger exaggerated immune responses—especially allergic-type reactions. That means more histamine, more itching, and more skin reactivity, even to otherwise harmless substances like certain fabrics, foods, or skincare ingredients.
Healing eczema isn’t just about avoiding triggers. It’s about lowering the internal toxin burden so the immune system can calm down and come back into balance.
Dental Decay: It’s Not Just About Sugar
We’ve been taught that cavities happen because of too much sugar or not enough brushing. But when decay happens despite solid oral hygiene, it’s time to look at the bigger picture.
To understand how mycotoxins affect enamel health, we need to look upstream at how they interfere with bone turnover—the body’s natural process of breaking down old bone and rebuilding new, healthy tissue. This cycle is crucial not just for bones, but also for tooth development, especially enamel strength and integrity.
Certain mycotoxins—like Trichothecenes, Ochratoxin A, and Aflatoxins—have been shown to interfere with both of these cell types. They interfere with the bone’s ability to rebuild and repair itself—slowing down new tissue formation and weakening existing structures. This doesn’t just affect bones—it impacts the jaw, the alveolar bone (which holds teeth in place), and the mineralization of enamel itself.
Strong enamel requires a steady supply of calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, zinc, and vitamins D and K2. Mycotoxins can damage the gut lining, impair nutrient absorption, deplete children’s nutrient reserves. So even if a child eats a nutrient-dense diet, their body may not be absorbing or utilizing those nutrients effectively, leaving enamel under-mineralized and more prone to decay.
Mycophenolic Acid, found elevated in his labs, is known to disrupt the gut and oral microbiomes. When the microbiome is out of balance, harmful bacteria like Streptococcus mutans—the ones that cause cavities—can thrive.
Behavior Concerns: A Sign of Neuroinflammation
These symptoms—mood swings, meltdowns, sensory overload—are often labeled as behavioral, but are actually signs of a stressed and inflamed nervous system.
Certain mycotoxins—especially Ochratoxin A and Trichothecenes—can cross the blood-brain barrier and trigger inflammation in the brain. This is called neuroinflammation, and in kids, it may look like mood swings, trouble sleeping, difficulty concentrating, aggression or defiance.
Mycotoxins impair mitochondrial function, which means they reduce the body’s ability to produce energy at the cellular level. The brain is one of the most energy-hungry organs, so when mitochondria are sluggish, kids may experience sensory overwhelm and sudden meltdowns.
Taking Action
We created a strategic protocol for him and his family to help him detox and restore balance to his gut health, immune system, and skin. That started with ensuring that they were not currently being exposed to mold in their home. They had lived in a few homes over the course of his mother’s pregnancy and his life, so they weren’t sure where the exposure had come from. Fortunately, no mold was found in their home and we were able to move forward with his protocol.
We first supported his inherent detoxification organs, the liver and kidneys, to ensure that as we began our work his body was able to withstand the additional requests we would be making during this deep detoxification process. We also brought in cellular membrane integrity support to help his cells better release stored toxins and restore communication at the cellular level. Lastly, we brought in therapeutic doses of key nutrients he was likely to be lacking based on his dental decay, like magnesium, calcium and vitamin D.
From there we began addressing the findings of his mycotoxin testing by selecting binders specific to his mycotoxin burden, as well as the other toxin indicated on testing. We supported his natural ability to chemically digest foods with digestive enzymes and aided his itchy skin with a histamine metabolism supportive nutrient, perilla.
We layered in a phase of herbal and fatty acid anti-fungal agents to ensure that any colonization of mold in the body was also addressed, and brought in gentle antimicrobials, antiparasitic herbs, and a biofilm disruptor to lower the burden of pathogenic overgrowths in his GI tract. While we know that toxin burden is the key contributing factor to imbalances in the gut, addressing these overgrowths is also crucial for restoring balance to the gut and ultimately the skin, immune system, and neurological system.
Within a week of getting started, his bowel movements had normalized to being a daily occurrence without straining or pain. After one month of working with our team, they were already starting to notice that he was less itchy, sleeping through the night, and that new flares had decreased significantly in severity. In five months, his skin was fully clear. His mood had shifted—he was calmer, more connected, and the happy, loving boy his mother knew him to be. His sensory-seeking behaviors had all but disappeared. And his teeth were beginning to remineralize and his superficial cavities were reversing with the help of nutrients and supporting enamel production.
Questions? Comments? We will be going LIVE with Deidre from Always Growing on Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook on Monday, May 19 at 1:00 PM EST. There, we will discuss this topic in depth and Deidre will take time to answer your questions. You may also comment below to keep the conversation going.
Author Bio:
Deidre Bloomquist is a visionary functional nutritionist and founder of Always Growing Wellness dedicated to unraveling the complex relationship between environmental toxins, fertility, and childhood health. With a deep passion for preconception toxin reduction, she empowers individuals to enhance fertility, achieve healthier pregnancies, and nurture thriving future generations. Her pediatric practice specializes in supporting gut health and eczema by screening for toxin burden. Her virtual practice supports clients across the United States to restore health by bringing our bodies back to their natural capacity. She is also the best-selling author of Toxic Infertility: Detoxification Solutions to Improve Natural Fertility.
Deidre Bloomquist is a visionary functional nutritionist and founder of Always Growing Wellness dedicated to unraveling the complex relationship between environmental toxins, fertility, and childhood health. With a deep passion for preconception toxin reduction, she empowers individuals to enhance fertility, achieve healthier pregnancies, and nurture thriving future generations. Her pediatric practice specializes in supporting gut health and eczema by screening for toxin burden. Her virtual practice supports clients across the United States to restore health by bringing our bodies back to their natural capacity. She is also the best-selling author of Toxic Infertility: Detoxification Solutions to Improve Natural Fertility.
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