So what is Candida? Well Candida albicans is a fungus, which is a form of yeast. Small amounts of candida happily and healthily live in your mouth and intestines and form part of your healthy gut ecology.
Unfortunately so many of us live a stressful lifestyle without taking proper time to care for ourselves and we may end up overusing medicinal drugs such as antibiotics, developing an over-reliance on sugar and abusing alcohol, which leads to an imbalance in our gut flora. The less gut flora, the more permeable the gut becomes and as it weakens, candida albicans is able to create damaging holes in the intestines, causing “leaky gut”. When this happens undigested food particles and toxic byproducts of Candida, instead of being fully contained in the GI tract, can pass into the bloodstream and cause an IgG immune reaction. An unhealed leaky gut can lead to nutritional deficiencies and compromise our overall well-being.
Could Candida be spreading it’s spinning it’s mouldy web inside of you? Let’s see if anything of the following ring true for you:
- Are you feeling moody and depressed?
- Your memory isn’t quite what it used to be and you find it hard to concentrate with that foggy head?
- Are you craving bread, sugar or drinking far too much wine or beer?
- Are you tired all of the time?
- You seem to be bloated no matter what you eat?
- Have you had a history of fungal infections such as athlete’s foot, ringworm or toenail fungus?
- Are you repeatedly getting thrush, BV vaginal bacteriosis or cystitis?
- Has your sexual desire taken an extended vacation?
- Does your doctor keep prescribing you antihistamines for allergies and hayfever?
- Are you finding it hard to keep your weight balanced?
How do you get candida overgrowth in the first place?
- Antibiotics – orally or IV (intravenously at hospital eg. Post surgery)
- Steroids or codeine (see EU Meds’s sale page)
- Hormonal contraception eg. Pill, injection, implant, coil with hormones
- Mercury fillings
- Vaccines
- Roaccutane
- Lack of breastfeeding as a baby
- High Alcohol intake
- High stress lifestyle
- High sugar diet
- Swimming in chlorine swimming pools
10 Tips to help you get rid of Candida
I would like to share with you 10 tips that will help you in your battle against Candida.
Now do be patient as it takes time to get candida under control so be determined as although the process may seem long, it is short compared to the length of time candida has been lingering around.
1. Pau D’Arco tea
Pau d’arco is a tree native to South America and is found growing in the Andes Mountains. The inner bark of the tree is used as herbal medicine while also acting as one of the best appetite suppressants.
Lapachol is an antifungal that is found in Pau D’arco. Some studies show that Pau D’arco works more effectively in it’s whole bark form to help you kill off the Candida Albicans Fungus.
2. Mercury Free Dentist
Even one mercury filling in your mouth is toxic. With every bite you are taking, mercury vapour is released and enters your bloodstream and causes oxidative processes. Oxidation leads to disease and also makes you age.
Candida is able to invade your body when your immune system is suppressed.
Be sure to find a mercury free dentist that can safely remove amalgam fillings from your teeth.
3. Avoid damp environments – mould
In Chinese Medicine, dampness is the cause of many of your illnesses ranging from allergies, chronic fatigue, cancer and candidiasis.
Dampness may be entering your body through your environment. For example if you live with a rainy climate or live in a mouldy room. It might be time to move out of a basement room or use a dehumidifier.
Food you are eating may be damp producing. Wheat, unrefined sugar and dairy are damp forming and are best left on the supermarket shelf and away from your mouth.
4. Snack on protein eg. Snack ideas
Sugar is the enemy when it comes to candida. Sugar is causing your blood sugar levels to rapidly spike followed by a roller coaster drop. When this drop happens you end up craving more sugar to boost your sunken energy levels. This cycle plays havoc with your energy levels and feeds candida. Artificial sweeteners are not a good alternative either as they continue to feed your sugar monster cravings.
Snacking on protein every 3-4 hours helps prevent sugar cravings and balance your energy levels.
If you’re an omnivore you can eat a variety of animal proteins such as small wild fish, organic chicken, grass fed beef, lamb or wild venison and vegetarian proteins such as duck eggs, shelled hemp seeds, pumpkin seeds, tahini and activated nuts.
5. Avoid yeast
Yeast feeds yeast and causes candida to multiply so avoid yeast containing foods.
Bread, beer, cider, grape skins, plum skins, MSG, Sake, Wine, Yeast extract eg. Marmite, vegemite, Bovril.
6. Avoid grains
Gluten grains such as wheat, oats, barley, rye, spelt and kamut, durum, triticale all feed candida because they have a high glycemic index.
It is argued that all cereal grains contain toxic proteins called promalines that humans can not digest and they may be irritating your gut.
So while combating your candida switch to grain free carbohydrates such as root vegetables.
While these do release some sugar, removing all carbohydrates can be too extreme and lead you to bingeing on pizza, bread and cakes. So including some root vegetables in your anti candida plan will be more sustainable, eg: pumpkin, sweet potato, butternut squash, parsnips, turnips.
7. Low GI fruits for breakfast
It’s not just white sugar and high fructose corn syrup that feed Candida. Dates, maple syrup, honey, agave nectar, fruit juices, and beetroot juice all keep Candida well fed.
The Glycemic Index food list shows the GI score for each food and this explains the speed at which sugar is being absorbed into your blood when you eat it. So switch from high GI fruits to low GI fruits such as Pears, Grapefruits, Berries and Plums.
8. Probiotics
Good bacteria should be living happily in your gut, taking care of your immune system and bulking out your stools to ensure regular bowel movements and keeping candida overgrowth at bay.
We will have picked up good bacteria from our mothers while making the journey into the big wide world via the birth canal and while drinking “healthy” breast milk as a baby.
However not all of us had the same start in life or antibiotics, roaccutane for acne, steroids, contraceptive hormones, stress and mercury fillings may have begun to wipe out your friendly bacteria.
Stress causes dysbiosis so never eat while arguing or in a hurry. Make sure you are sitting down to eat and concentrating on each bite, savouring the moment and chewing each mouthful 20-30 times.
Take probiotics with a human strain of good bacteria, so that they are able to implant in your gut, for at least 3 months to win the battle against candida
(Tel +44(0)1663718850 patient of Katherine Ung W2 4BE: Order Ultraprobioplex ND).
9. Bone Broth
Collagen is the protein found in the bone marrow, cartilage, tendons and ligaments of of vertebrate animals. The breakdown of collagen in bone broths produces gelatine and this soothes and smoothes your gut lining to help heal your leaky gut to stop candida burrowing holes in all the wrong places. It takes 24-72 hours to make and if you’re out for the day you can use a slow cooker for your bone broth recipe.
10. Colonic Irrigation
Herxheimer reaction is what happens when high quantities of yeast are being killed off and releasing large amounts of toxins into your poor system. As candida is dying off you may experience:
- Nausea
- Headache, fatigue, dizziness
- Bloating, gas, constipation or diarrhea
- Increased joint or muscle pain
- Elevated heart rate
- Body itchiness, hives or rashes
- Sweating
- Skin breakouts
- Recurring vaginal, prostate and sinus infections
Colonic irrigation otherwise known as colon hydrotherapy can help you cope with the candida die-off by helping your liver and intestines expel the toxins and cutting down on the amount of toxins being released into your bloodstream.
Take back control and get rid of candida
Now that you know how easily Candida can get out of control from common and overused drugs such as antibiotics and the contraceptive pill and from bad dentistry with mercury fillings, you may realise just how far back in your timeline Candida started to drag you down with fatigue, mood swings, cravings and bloating. Perhaps you have “gotten used” to feeling this way?
Well now you can start to take back control and keep Candida on the naughty step instead of letting it run wild, by removing the root causes of candida, starving the candida over a 12-24 week period, removing the toxic waste it so unpleasantly left behind and restoring healthy gut flora to finally clear your brain from the foggy haze and leave you feeling happier, energised, clear headed and free from those crazy cravings and irritating symptoms.