# Questions about food mold **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 5, 2015, 10:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-food-mold/724306 "2015-07-05T10:40:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![H3Knuckles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ba8739/32.png) [@H3Knuckles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/H3Knuckles)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 10:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-food-mold/724306/1 "2015-07-05T10:40:29Z")
Hey, just went to eat one of two muffins that where ~1 week old. One had a couple mold spots, so I threw it in the garbage; however, the other had no signs of mold at all, so I ate it. Looked, smelled, and tasted normal so I think I’m okay. Now, I’ve read how mold grows into food in ways that aren’t always visible, so I know that it isn’t safe to just cut out the moldy section and eat the rest (excluding certain hard cheeses, vegetables, etc). But can mold start growing under the surface, or does it always grow from the outside inward? ---
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 10:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-food-mold/724306/2 "2015-07-05T10:56:25Z")
ahhh…thank you for reminding me of a thread I once started on this very topic! [I just ate some green moldy bread–am I gonna die?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=277793&highlight=moldy) (spoiler: the thread is 10 years old, but I’m not dead yet. ) ---
**Author:** ![H3Knuckles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ba8739/32.png) [@H3Knuckles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/H3Knuckles)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-food-mold/724306/3 "2015-07-05T11:20:00Z")
Hah, pretty funny thread. Good to see it turned out okay. 😉 Well, as I said, this isn’t a “am I going to be okay?” post, just a general curiosity about how mold develops on food, particularly baked goods. ---
**Author:** ![Habeed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a587f6/32.png) [@Habeed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Habeed)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-food-mold/724306/4 "2015-07-05T14:55:31Z")
I think that if you’re a healthy adult without serious allergies and an undamaged immune system, you could probably have eaten the moldy muffin no problem. Or, do what I do, and eat around the moldy spot if it tastes ok. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-food-mold/724306/5 "2015-07-05T18:41:29Z")
In general, any spoilage you can see won’t harm you. Think evolution: something that harms you needs to be ingested to work. Why alert others to your presence? That’s why you don’t see salmonella or e. coli without a microscope. OTOH, mold needs to grow on the muffin. If people see it, they will throw out the muffin and the mold can continue to grow. If they can’t see it, they will eat it and the digestive juices will take care of it. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-food-mold/724306/6 "2015-07-05T19:52:43Z")
I’ve been told that mold on baked goods isn’t something you can just cut off, like mold on cheese, because if it’s on the surface, chances are it’s already grown down into the bread itself, and the spores are present, even if you can’t see them. You’re better off just pitching it. ---
**Author:** ![JKilez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e5b9ba/32.png) [@JKilez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKilez)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-food-mold/724306/7 "2015-07-05T19:57:47Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > I’ve been told that mold on baked goods isn’t something you can just cut off, like mold on cheese, because if it’s on the surface, chances are it’s already grown down into the bread itself, and the spores are present, even if you can’t see them. You’re better off just pitching it. I have heard this too, but my understanding is that the health risk is so small, that unless you are immunocompromised, it is generally safe to eat. ---
**Author:** ![No\_umlaut\_for\_U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ea5d25/32.png) [@No\_umlaut\_for\_U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/No_umlaut_for_U)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/questions-about-food-mold/724306/8 "2015-07-05T20:22:06Z")
Simple answer: Mold is aerobic, so grows from the outside in. Depending on the mold, you would have been safe; but in many foods, the mold growth will raise the pH to a level where pathogenic bacteria can grow. That’s the reason why soft mold-ripened cheeses such as brie are forbidden during pregnancy.