Candida Yeast Overgrowth

A healthy diet is one of the most important steps for successfully treating candida. The goal of your diet should be to reduce or eliminate the foods that Candida albicans and other yeasts thrive upon, and to create a slightly alkaline internal environment that is rich in oxygen, making it extremely difficult for unhealthy yeast and other pathogens to survive.

To eliminate foods that support yeast overgrowth, avoid all sources of sugar, including all sugar products such as sucanat, honey, molasses, maple, agave, brown rice, and all of the refined syrups such as corn syrup. Read food labels, carefully avoiding foods that contain sweeteners of any kind, including those listed above, along with dextrose, fructose, fruit juices, or concentrated fruit juice sweeteners, lactose, and sucrose. Eliminate all forms of alcohol, and simple or refined carbohydrates such as bread, pasta, baked goods, and all foods made from white or refined flour. Abstain from most fruits with the exception of berries, grapefruit and green apples. Refrain from eating potatoes including yams and sweet potatoes, and other sweet or starchy vegetables such as parsnips, beets, peas and corn. More diet details can be found in the Candida Cleanse.

Most people with candida also suffer from food allergies. Therefore, it is important to be tested for food allergies and sensitivities, and to avoid allergic foods for a minimum of three months, so that your body has the opportunity to recover from the burden of eating them. If the foods to which you are allergic or sensitive are healthy foods, you can reintroduce them into your diet one at a time after your health has improved, and then eat them no more frequently than once every four to seven days. If they still provoke an allergic reaction, however, you should eliminate them from your diet.

Mould-containing foods should be avoided such as cheese, grapes, mushrooms, and all pasteurized fermented foods. Raw cultured vegetables that have not been heat pasteurized such as sauerkraut, Kim chi, and other raw cultured vegetables, are an excellent choice. Read more about the benefits of cultured and fermented foods in the Candida Diet section of the Candida Cleanse. Every effort should be made to eliminate pasteurized milk and dairy products, including yogurt, due to the lactose sugar. Small quantities of raw yogurt or kefir are acceptable, and especially good if made from raw goat, rather than cow’s milk. Minimize your intake of commercially harvested meats and poultry because of the antibiotics, hormones, and steroids they contain. Whenever possible, choose organic, free-range meats and poultry instead.

The following dietary guidelines should be followed for 4-6 weeks as you begin your overall candida treatment:

Eliminate: All foods that contain yeast, including bread, biscuits, and cakes; all pasteurized heat treated fermented foods, including vinegar, soy sauce, and pickled foods; all forms of sugar and foods that contain sugar, including sweets and chocolates, honey, maple syrup, soda, sweetened drinks, and sweetened foods; all pasteurized milk and dairy products, including yogurt; all foods that contain artificial sweeteners, colorings, preservatives, and other additives, as well as trans-fatty acids and partially hydrogenated oils; all refined white flour products; all fruits except grapefruit, berries and green apples; all alcohol products; all black teas, and coffee.

Eat frequently: Choose from a wide range of fresh vegetables and salads, emphasizing organic, leafy-green vegetables; complex whole grains, especially quinoa, buckwheat and millet; garlic; and cold-pressed raw coconut and extra virgin olive oil.

Also include, but less frequently: Lean, organic meats and poultry; wild caught fish; eggs; almonds; seeds, and complex grains and legumes.

Eating in this way will not only help your body’s recovery from candida, it will also help shift it into a slightly alkaline, oxygen-enriched state that will make it impossible for Candida albicans to thrive.

For more in-depth food and supplement guidelines, see the Candida Cleanse, please.

Supplements:

Nutritional supplements can play a very important role in your recovery from candida, because of their ability to improve immune function while also improving digestion and aiding in your body’s detoxification process. They are especially valuable for people who are severely rundown due to suffering from candida for months or years.

Recommended nutritional supplements for candida include:

• Vitamin A
• Beta carotene
• All B-complex vitamins
• Vitamin C
• Vitamin E
• Calcium
• Chromium
• Magnesium
• Selenium
• Zinc
• A good probiotic formula containing acidophilus and bifidobacteria is important, as is fructooligosaccharide (FOS), a healthy sugar that stimulates the growth of good bacteria in the intestines.
• Essential fatty acids, especially those rich in omega-3 oils, and adrenal extract are also advised.
• The amino acid taurine can help, as can supplementing with hydrochloric acid (HCl), which can significantly improve digestion and therefore the assimilation of other nutrients.
• Colloidal silver can help, as well.
• Vitamin D – Vitamin D has been shown to be beneficial.  Take Vitamin D3 50,000-100,000 International Units a day for periods of 4 weeks at a time.

To further aid digestion and improve immune function, you should also supplement with digestive enzymes. Especially useful in this regard are the enzymes amylase and cellulose, both of which can also help to digest and eliminate unhealthy yeasts, including Candida albicans.

Prescription and non-prescription medication:

What non-prescription and prescription drugs are you taking?  Your non-prescription and prescription are partially the reason that you have this   illness or disease – you need to get off these medications but do so only under the guidance of a licensed health care practitioner.