你不會因為吃霉菌而死

Mold is gross, no doubt about it. Opening a container of strawberries or a loaf of bread and seeing the familiar bluish-gray fuzz is totally cringe-worthy. But what if you don't spot the mold until after you've eaten half your sandwich or a few strawberries? Are you destined to get sick?

毫無疑問，霉菌很惡心。打開一個裝草莓或一條面包的容器，看到熟悉的藍灰色的絨毛，你會感到非常害怕。但是如果你吃了一半三明治或一些草莓后才發(fā)現(xiàn)霉菌呢?就注定要生病嗎?

Mold is a microscopic fungi that is practically ubiquitous in our environments, since it's found indoors and outdoors, and can grow wherever there are high levels of moisture, low light, and above-freezing temperatures — think basements, bathrooms, and refrigerators.

霉菌是一種微生物真菌，實際上在我們的環(huán)境中無處不在，因為它在室內(nèi)和室外都可以發(fā)現(xiàn)，并且可以在任何濕度高、光線暗、溫度高于冰點的地方生長——比如地下室、浴室和冰箱。

According to The Mold Source, there are over 100,000 types of mold. Thankfully, most of them are harmless to healthy individuals with strong immune systems. Marina Yuabova, D.N.P., a doctor of nursing practice and nurse practitioner in New York City, told Shape, "When the immune system works well, and healthy gut flora is abundant, molds will have no negative impact on the health and wellness of that individual." In other words, most of the time, if you accidentally eat a bit of something moldy, you should just forget about it and move on. As Rudolph Bedford, M.D., a gastroenterologist at Providence Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica told Women's Health Magazine, "You're not going to die from eating mold."

根據(jù)The Mold資料，有超過100000種霉菌。謝天謝地，它們中的大多數(shù)對具有強大免疫系統(tǒng)的健康個體無害。紐約市的護理實踐醫(yī)生和執(zhí)業(yè)護士，告訴Shape，“當免疫系統(tǒng)工作良好，健康的腸道菌群豐富，霉菌將不會對個人的健康和福祉產(chǎn)生負面影響。”換句話說，大多數(shù)時候，如果你不小心吃了一點發(fā)霉的東西，你應(yīng)該忘記它，繼續(xù)生活。圣莫尼卡普羅維登斯圣約翰健康中心的胃腸病學家魯?shù)婪?middot;貝德福德醫(yī)學博士告訴《女性健康雜志》說:“你不會因為吃霉菌而死。”

For some people though, exposure to mold — whether eaten or otherwise — can cause an allergic reaction or respiratory illness. And while most molds are ultimately harmless, a few, under the right conditions, produce poisonous substances called mycotoxins, which can make you really sick.

然而，對于一些人來說，接觸霉菌——不管是吃的還是別的——都會引起過敏反應(yīng)或呼吸道疾病。雖然大多數(shù)霉菌最終是無害的，但在適當?shù)臈l件下，少數(shù)霉菌會產(chǎn)生一種叫做真菌毒素的有毒物質(zhì)，這會讓你真的生病。

But what about moldy blue cheese? And what if you really don't want to chuck that smoked gouda because of the moldy corner section? Well, here's some good news: blue-veined cheeses are actually made with Penicillium mold spores, and are perfectly safe (and even healthy) to eat (via Food & Wine).

但是發(fā)霉的藍奶酪呢?如果你真的不想因為角落發(fā)霉而扔掉煙熏奶酪呢?好吧，這里有一些好消息：藍紋奶酪實際上是由青霉孢子制成的，食用(通過食物和葡萄酒)是完全安全的。

When it comes to the food in our kitchens, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has put out some handy guidelines on how to handle mold. For hard cheeses and firm fruits and vegetables (like carrots), cut off at least one inch around and below the moldy area, being careful to keep the knife away from the mold so as not to contaminate the rest of the food.

說到廚房里的食物，美國農(nóng)業(yè)部(USDA)就如何處理霉菌提出了一些方便的指導方針。對于硬的奶酪和硬的水果和蔬菜(如胡蘿卜)，至少在發(fā)霉的地方周圍和下面一英寸的地方切掉，小心地讓刀遠離霉菌，以免污染其他食物。

For soft fruits and vegetables, foods with a high moisture content (like yogurt and jams), and breads, it's safest to just toss the whole thing. That's because mold has 'roots' that can spread deep into soft foods, well below the visibly-moldy surface. Not only that, but bacteria can grow there along with the mold.

對于松軟的水果和蔬菜，水分含量高的食物(如酸奶和果醬)，以及面包，把它們?nèi)咳拥羰亲畎踩摹＿@是因為霉菌有“根”，可以深入到軟性食物中，遠低于明顯發(fā)霉的表面。不僅如此，細菌還可以和霉菌一起在那里生長。

Even though a couple of bites of mold most likely won't make you sick, it's smart to err on the side of caution. "When in doubt, throw it out" isn't just a catch-phrase for recyclers — it's great advice in the kitchen too.

盡管咬幾口霉菌很可能不會讓你生病，但明智的做法是謹慎行事。“當有疑問時，扔掉它”不僅僅是回收商的一句流行語，也是廚房里的一個很好的建議。