I need to say something that might frustrate you.
In my professional opinion, baking soda is one of the most widely believed and least effective household practices in America.
Here's why every consumer product fails:
Baking soda? Absorbs a tiny percentage of odor molecules until it saturates. That takes days. Does absolutely nothing to mold spores or the volatile organic compounds that cross the blood-brain barrier. They pass right through it. In 1972, Arm & Hammer launched a marketing campaign that convinced America to put baking soda in the fridge. It has almost no scientific basis. But it sells millions of boxes every year at $3 a pop, replaced monthly. Do the math.
Activated charcoal bags? Same absorption principle. Slightly slower saturation. Still zero effect on mold spores or airborne neurotoxins. Needs replacing every few weeks.
Vinegar wipes? Surface cleaning only. Mold spores are airborne. They recolonize every clean surface within hours.
UV sanitizer wands? Only treats what you directly point at for a few seconds. The rest of the fridge stays contaminated.
Plug-in purifiers? Bulky, expensive, and the replacement filters cost $30-$50 every few months. Most produce ozone that creates its own neurological problems.
Every single one of these products is based on the same fundamentally flawed principle , absorb or mask the smell.
But the compounds affecting your brain don't have a smell at all. Many mycotoxins and VOCs are completely odorless. Which means even a fridge that smells "fine" can be quietly contributing to neuroinflammation 20 times a day.
It's a fight that absorption can never win.
And the companies selling you these products know it. Because that's their business model — you buy, it fails, you buy again next month.