The next time you're gardening
make sure you're aware of this health risk.
Warmer weather is setting in, which means many of us will vent
into the garden to welcome those springtime blooms. Whether you like to grow
pansies, daffodils, or tulips, there's much pleasure in keeping your flowers
happy and healthy. But a recently published study found that your garden could
pose a severe health risk to you this year, so you might want to think twice
before you dive into your outdoor chores. Read on to find out what could be
growing in your garden and making you sick.
Plant experts have issued other warnings already this year.
Scientists and plant experts called for anyone with a Bradford
pear tree in their yard to cut it down earlier this month. These trees are
tricky, as they have beautiful white blooms, but they endanger surrounding wildlife
and "choke out other plants," as reported by USA Today.
In addition to being dangerous to wildlife, when these trees cross
with other pear varieties, the offspring—called Callery pears—produce thorns
and thickets that can puncture your car's tire. The situation has gotten so bad
that some states in the United States have outright banned Bradford pears' sale
and cultivation. Now, scientists are voicing additional concerns about
different garden growths.
Your flower beds could be growing something harmful to your
health.
Flower beds are one of the most beautiful parts of any garden—and
those of us with a green thumb take pride in cultivating them. Flower beds,
soil beds, compost bins, and decaying wood may be breeding grounds for
drug-resistant mold, according to a study published April 25 in Nature
Microbiology.
Researchers at Imperial College London (ICL) analyzed over 100
samples from patients infected with Aspergillus fumigatus (a type of mold that
can cause different diagnoses) across the U.K. between 2005 and 2017. Some were
almost identical when comparing lung samples with mold samples from patients'
surrounding environments, including nearby soil.
According to reporting by Insider, this study is one of the first
to confirm that these infections can be transmitted from "everyday
environments."
Drug resistance makes fungal infections more difficult to treat.
Our immune systems can fight off inhaled mold spores that cause
illness, particularly Aspergillus fumigatus. According to the Mayo Clinic,
several of these strains are harmless, but some can cause respiratory diseases.
When people become sick with this kind of infection, called aspergillosis,
antifungal drugs are known as azoles are the go-to treatment.
But concerns arise when infections cannot effectively be treated
due to drug resistance, leading to severe and life-threatening illnesses in
some patients. Researchers found that over half of Aspergillus samples taken
from infected patients were resistant to at least one of the tested antifungal
drugs, and 12% were resistant to two or more antifungal drugs from clinical and
environmental sources the worries.
Patients with compromised immune systems are particularly at risk.
Due to a rising number of patients with "severe viral
respiratory tract infections," researchers are looking to understand
better how and why this resistance is occurring—and agricultural fungicides
appear to be the root of the problem. Johanna Rhodes, the study's senior author
and genomic epidemiology fellow at ICL, told Insider that a "hefty dose of
fungicide" is generally enough to kill Aspergillus. However, drug
resistance occurs due to "gradual exposure in the environment."
"It's like building up a tan gradually," Rhodes said.
"If it's exposed a little bit at a time, it will develop the resistance
slowly."
Researchers found that the fungi identified in the study had
become resistant before infecting human lungs, not during treatment in hospital
settings. This is a big problem for immunocompromised patients, and it can even
be fatal, according to Insider.
To protect yourself from exposure to this mold, there are steps
that you can take.
Researchers are working to confront this issue and stressed the
need to understand better "environmental drivers and the genetic basis of
fungal drug resistance." As Rhodes told Insider, drug-resistant
Aspergillus is present "virtually everywhere" because mold spores can
travel in the air. Spores can also spread their genetic information to other
mold colonies that have never had to confront azoles.
This information may seem disheartening, but Rhodes said you could be proactive about protecting yourself. Leaving windows open can help prevent buildup in the home, she told Insider, and when gardening or handling compost, it is also helpful to don one of those trusty N95 masks.