What is Candida?
Candida is a fungus, which is a form of yeast, and a very small amount of it lives in your mouth and intestines. Its main job is to aid in digestion and nutrient absorption. Yeasts are parasitic organisms that deprive the body of nutrients. They also eliminate toxic waste into the body and been found to produce over 70 known toxins. When Candida grows from its yeast form into a fungal form, it creates waste products known as ‘mycotoxins’. Among the mycotoxins produced is ‘acetaldehyde’, a poison that is converted by the liver into alcohol. As alcohol builds up in the system, symptoms associated with alcohol intoxication develop. This is why one of the most common symptoms of Candida is ‘brain fog’.
In its fungal form, Candida grows long roots called ‘rhizoids’ that puncture the intestinal lining, leading to Leaky Gut Syndrome. This means that the digestive tract has holes in it, allowing Candida to pass through into the bloodstream. When undigested food particles leak through these holes and enter the bloodstream, the body views them as foreign invaders. This can result in food allergies or sensitivities, and autoimmune diseases. As mycotoxins become abundant in the body, more serious and chronic conditions can develop. Toxins tend to settle in the organs and tissues of the greatest weakness. As everyone has a different area of genetic or acquired weakness, each individual can manifest a different disorder. This explains why Candida symptoms can be so wide-ranging.
Common Causes of Candida
The healthy bacteria in your gut typically keep your candida levels in check. However, several factors can cause the candida population to get out of hand.
- Taking a round of antibiotics; A course of antibiotics will likely kill the harmful bacteria for which it is prescribed, but it also destroys many of the beneficial bacteria that live in your This army of bacteria plays a vitally important role in your immune system.
- Eating a diet high in refined carbohydrates and sugar; The modern diet provides huge amounts of the sugar that Candida albicans needs to survive and thrive. That includes sugar itself, foods containing sugar, and also anything that converts to sugar. Refined carbohydrates, like white flour, and even fruits can all contribute to Candida overgrowth.
- Taking oral contraceptives; The intestines are delicate organs, containing a broad mixture of microorganisms and yeasts that all help to process and digest food. They depend on the right environment to support them, and this equilibrium can be thrown off by the hormonal imbalances caused by the contraceptive pill. By disturbing this balance, the contraceptive pill opens the door for Candida to once again outgrow its competitors in the gut. Estrogen, the major ingredient in the contraceptive pill, is known to promote the growth of yeast
- Chemical Exposure; Chemicals that are added to drinking water, such as chlorine and fluoride, can kill the beneficial bacteria in your gut. This weakens your immune system and has the potential to allow a small number of Candida yeast cells in your gut to grow into a Candida infestation. Chlorine, in particular, can be found almost everywhere you look. Most cities add chlorine to their drinking water. This means that you are drinking chlorine every day, bathing in it, shower in it, and using it to wash the clothes that you and your family wear. As a powerful disinfectant, it ensures that the water supply stays free of pathogens. However, the health benefits are outweighed by chlorine’s effect on your gut flora and immune system.
- Diabetes: Sufferers of diabetes are more likely to experience repeated yeast infections for two reasons. The first reason is that diabetics have high blood sugar levels that feed the Candida yeast cells. This is either due to a shortage of insulin production in the body or because the body is not reacting to insulin as it should. The second reason is the weakened immune system that is one of the symptoms of diabetes
- Chronic Stress: Stress affects your body in two ways, both of which can lead to excess Candida. One of your body’s first reactions to a stressful situation is to release cortisol, a hormone that depresses your immune system and raises your blood sugar level. The Candida yeast feeds on the extra sugar, while your weakened immune system is powerless to stop it. Stress gives it the chance to overpower the existing gut flora in your small intestine
Some of the Candida Symptoms:
- Skin and nail fungal infections, such as athlete’s foot or toenail fungus
- Food allergies/Intolerances
- Frequent sinus infections
- Dry mouth and tongue, cracked tongue, bleeding gums
- Strong sugar and refined carbohydrate cravings
- Recurrent urinary tract infections (UTIs)
- Depression, anxiety, sudden mood swings, lack of concentration, headaches, drowsiness, or fatigue
- Abdominal pain. bloating, gas, constipation, or diarrhea, or mucus in the stool
- Difficulty concentrating, poor memory, lack of focus, and brain fog
- Skin issues like eczema, psoriasis, hives, and rashes
- Vaginal infections, urinary tract infections, rectal itching, or vaginal itching
- Severe seasonal allergies or itchy ears
- Mood Swing
Alternative/Natural Remedies to Eliminate Candida
For best results, we recommend a multi-step approach to ensure an effective treatment along with the Anti-Candida Diet.
The majority of a Candida yeast overgrowth is within the digestive system especially around the ileocecal valve connecting the small intestine to the large and within the transverse colon. When you destroy a yeast cell with a product or substance, the internal yeast fluids being toxic to the body, are released into the digestive chamber in fairly large amounts and are immediately absorbed into the bloodstream. If your program is effective, there will be thousands upon thousands of yeast cells die very quickly every day and will create the “Hexheimer Dieoff Reaction.” This is where most yeast poisons are created faster than the immune system or eliminative channels can remove from the blood, and therefore you may feel some temporary discomforts such as a headache, fatigue, muscle aches, joint or chest pains, sinus, lung, throat inflammation and mucus, constipation, gas, etc. These symptoms can all be greatly alleviated by assisting the body in removing the dead candida yeast cells and their toxic by-products. By far the very best method of accomplishing this is through colonic irrigation. Since the majority of the candida is around the ileocecal valve in the colon, it only makes sense to flush them out of this area and out of the body before they are absorbed in the bloodstream.
2. Supplement Recommendations
- Minimum 30 day Candida Cleanse (anti-fungal, anti-bacterial)
- Probiotics: Probiotics provide the helpful bacteria that your gut desperately needs, and helps fight off the bad bacteria that can overrun your gastrointestinal tract with yeast overgrowth.
- Digestive Enzyme: Digestive enzyme is frequently used to help balance the gut. The nutritional supplemental Digestive enzyme should be taken with every meal, as well as in between meals so that the build-up of yeast will be reduced, as well as aiding digestion of the current meals
- Coconut oil: Coconut oil contains both lauric acid and caprylic acid. Those acids make it antimicrobial, antifungal, and antiviral. Coconut oil is a great contributor to health and healing.
- Grapefruit seed extract: A Polish study published in 2001 found that a 33 percent grapefruit extract has a potent antifungal effect against Candida albicans strains taken from patients with candida symptoms. GSE’s antifungal properties help it combat candida infestations by killing the yeast cells that have taken over in the body.
- Olive leaf extract: Olive Leaf extract is 100% natural, herbal antifungal, antibacterial, an antiviral extract obtained from specific parts of the olive tree.
The Candida Die-Off Reaction
This phenomenon, known as the Herxheimer reaction, can lead to temporarily unpleasant symptoms that have all the characteristics of a reaction to a toxic substance. This is, in fact, a good sign since it means large numbers of the candida yeast cells are being killed by the supplements, but unfortunately, they are releasing their toxins into the bloodstream. Symptoms include many of those you have come to associate with bad days with the candida infection, such as itching, headaches, nausea, muscular aches, and flu-like symptoms. By flushing out the colon through colon hydrotherapy, you drastically cut down the effects of the die-off symptoms. The die-off toxins (plus the dead candida cells) are being flushed out of the system before they are absorbed into the bloodstream.
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