Normal levels of candida live inside everyone. They can be located in the gastrointestinal tract, skin, and vagina. But under certain circumstances this issue can grow out of its normal range and wreck havoc on the body. This is called Candida Overgrowth.
Some Very Common Signs Of Candida Overgrowth are:
1. Thrush
2. Skin and Nail infections (athletes foot)
3. Fibromyalgia or Joint Pain
4. Brain fog or Mood swings
5. Reoccurring Sinus Infections.
6. Strong Sugar Cravings
7. Digestive Issues and Reflux
8. Chronic Fatigue
The theory behind Candidiasis, which is candida infection or candida overgrowth, is that leaky gut occurs when candida overgrowth sticks to the lining of the gut therefore causing microscopic holes in the lining and allowing proteins to escape which creates inflammatory conditions.
Other symptoms that correlate to this is MCAS, or mast cell activation syndrome, or food sensitivities or histamine intolerance.
What causes this you may wonder? Many things can including:
Stress
Heavy Metals burden
Dysbiosis
High sugar/carbs diet
Anti-biotics use
Steroids use
Birth Control Pills
Especially...Mycotoxin exposure/ Mold toxicity
What do most of these have in common? Suppressing your immune system so the bad guys
can take over and flourish.
How Can I Test Myself?
Any doctor can perform an IGE, IGG or IGM test to see if you've been exposed or have an active infection (however this would only be positive if it's systemic).
You can also do a Great Plains OATS test, which would give you a good overall picture if you have SIBO, or SIFO or candida overgrowth.
I would also recommend doing a urine heavy metals test as well as this can contribute to candida overgrowth and hinder if from staying in low levels or non-existant.
What can I do to heal myself?
If it's a severe case or systemic, you will need to find an Integrative, Environmental or Functional doctor to write you a prescription for anti-fungals such as Nyastatin or Itraconozole.
If it's mild, you can approach it with herbs such as Pau de Arco, Berberine, Allicin, Biocidin, Monolaurin, oil of oregano, or coconut oil (Mct oil). You can also add biofilm busters such as curcumin, serrapeptase, SF722, Interfase plus or candidase.
Also DIET is KEY! While your killing you don't want to be feeding the fungi, therefore you must:
Cut sugar
No alcohol
Low carbs
One of the reasons candida can make you feel sick is because it produces toxins of their own- Gliotoxins. Therefore as your killing more candida more toxins will be released. In order to capture some of these toxins which are released you can use a binder.
Some binders that would work in this realm are:
Bentonite Clay
Activated Charcoal
Saccharomyces Boulardii
If you start killing too fast and are having major die off reactions drink plenty of water and you can take Milk thistle to help clear your liver of the excess overload.
Some common signs of die-off can be:
1. Brain fog
2. Headaches
3. Intensified sugar cravings
4. Nausea
5. Feeling cold, chills, low grade fever
6. Dizzyness
Candida Overgrowth can be a serious infection especially if it spreads systemically through the blood stream. If you suspect this could be happening please check with your a medical professional who is familiar in this realm (Functional, Integrative, or Environmental Physician).
Candidiases is at the heart of many autoimmune disorders, mood disorders, arthritic issues and even neuropathies.
Our current lifestyle choices have a lot to do with this real life epidemic. Stick to eating less processed and less sugary foods. Avoid where possible steroids, over use of antibiotics, alcohol, and stress as these can all weaken your immune system and allow candida to grow unchecked. And lastly as in my own story make sure whatever house you move into does NOT HAVE MOLD!