{"id":2936,"date":"2018-11-09T11:09:11","date_gmt":"2018-11-09T16:09:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/its-cuthemedev1.carleton.ca\/chemistry\/?p=2936"},"modified":"2025-08-19T10:51:05","modified_gmt":"2025-08-19T14:51:05","slug":"farmtario-dr-david-miller-on-mycotoxins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/chemistry\/2018\/farmtario-dr-david-miller-on-mycotoxins\/","title":{"rendered":"Farmtario: Dr. David Miller on Mycotoxins"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n Farmtario: Dr. David Miller on Mycotoxins\n <\/h1>\n \n \n <\/header>\n\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

Take mycotoxin health hazards seriously<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Use masks and gloves when handling mycotoxin-contaminated corn<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Inhaled mycotoxins can impair lung function. Photo: OMAFRA Field Crop Report<\/span><\/i><\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

High rates of mycotoxin in this year\u2019s corn crop might be financially unfortunate \u2013 but don\u2019t let it ruin your health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mycotoxins, that is, can cause major health problems if inhaled through the dust generated during grain harvesting and handling. It\u2019s a hazard that\u2019s neither new nor uncommon, and one that requires extra attention when risks are higher than usual.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Serious sickness<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While mycotoxins can pose problems if consumed through food \u2013 an issue of particular note for livestock producers \u2013 inhaling the fungi-derived poison can be very serious. Indeed, David Miller \u2013 an authority on mycotoxins and professor in the Department of Chemistry at Carleton University \u2013 says inhalation can even be a more potent route of exposure than injection. Inhaled mycotoxins, he says, can severely hamper lung function, leading to what has been known in the past as \u201cfarmer\u2019s lung.\u201d It\u2019s a sickness that may not be deadly, but can be extremely debilitating. Recovery can also be quite prolonged.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like being in a mouldy building. This isn\u2019t hypothetical, it\u2019s real,\u201d says Miller. \u201cThe risk around mouldy crops is much greater.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Preventing Exposure<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Farmers and others working with grain are at the greatest risk when working in semi-enclosed spaces, loading wagons, and outside the combine more generally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Precautions to prevent exposure to moldy grain, as well as to minimize contamination of facilities and equipment, must be taken according to a chapter written by Miller in a World Health Organization publication on mycotoxins:<\/p>\n\n\n\n