The Effects of Candida and Supporting Overgrowth

Candida is a highly resistant yeast which transforms into a fungus containing rhizoids or plantlike roots, and mutates when fed but hides dormant for years when it isn’t fed. It forms and changes as it ages adding different layers of staged growth some with a protective hard outer shell made up of protein.

People with leaky gut have a battle in their intestines where Candida albicans fight good bacteria each looking for footing to grow. The rhizoids extend their roots so deep into the intestinal wall that many clinical researchers attribute their roots for causing the ulcer lesions in the intestinal tract that form leaky gut, known medically as Intestinal Permeability.

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Killing candida includes starving the yeast so that it doesn’t grow but also includes dissolving the outer protein layer that forms a hard shell. Once that is done the candida underneath can also be killed. The body’s immune system can attack the candida but if the growth is too prolific the body needs assistance.

Many people have candida but don’t realize it is present. Manifestation for some often appears during the holidays with thrush, a white coating that appears on the tongue. Occasional sweets feed Candida albicans making the holiday season a time for proliferation. Many professionals attribute seasonal stress and pathogenic overgrowth to illnesses often seen at this time, like the flu. 

Starving candida can be done through diet which does not contain sugars. The vegan diet, raw food diet or high protein diet all starve out Candida albicans. The Weston A. Price, Paleo or GAPS method of eating are the most healthful. Candida forms an intelligent mycelium network  much like mushrooms. When you don’t feed candida it goes into a dormant state and waits. One cup of coffee with some sugar years after not feeding candida and it thrives again leaving you more sensitive because the strain is stronger.

Everybody has candida. It is designed to digest you when you die. Candida that has been fed and allowed to proliferate is the problem.

“It is our gut flora that is the main source of sickness,” says neurologist Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride. She discusses how it is the major organ responsible for immunity. McBride says, “If the gut flora is damaged the immunity gets out of balance. It can not react appropriately to the environment any more.” As the base of our health foundation she says, “When (gut flora is) out of balance the person becomes allergic.”

Allergies are one of the first signs of intestinal wall decline. Learn more here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_0NvcJZwa8.

Candida yeast and claustridia bacteria are both gut bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics. Both thrive after antibiotics because the beneficial gut flora has been removed creating less of a fight for the problematic resistant strains. Both candida and claustridia have many different spore forming bacteria as well as different varieties. Claustridia is a highly resistant spore forming bacteria resistant even to boiling water and has about a hundred different species in their family.  When the beneficial probiotic bacteria, of your gut flora is wiped out by antibiotics, these yeasts grow exponentially as they are resistant to broad spectrum antibiotics and have space to multiply. Beneficial flora normally keep these bacteria in check but when the good flora is erased it gives, “A window of opportunity for a pathogen to get into that niche and establish itself. Once it’s established it’s very difficult to drive it out,” Dr. McBride says.

It is important to replenish good bacteria in gut flora when taking antibiotics or if you are already experiencing candida overgrowth. A good quality probiotic and fermented foods like sauerkraut will feed good bacteria growth. Homemade kraut, homemade kamboocha and homemade yogurt all have more beneficial probiotic strains than those bought from the store. Dr. Joseph Mercola says in comparing store bought fermented foods the beneficial good probiotic strains are in the hundreds vs homemade fermented foods having strains in the hundreds of thousands. The word probiotic originates from the Greek meaning gives life.

Many people spend hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars on herbal supplements and prescription medication to kill candida. Many homeopathic remedies work amazingly well with candida. Candida can not exist in the presence of coconut oil. Use a good quality coconut oil like this one. Add coconut oil to foods, cups of bone broth and use it to oil pull or brush your teeth. Topically it is an effective lotion.  

Some practitioners prefer using food grade diatemacious earth, bentaninte clay and high doses of a well absorbed vitamin C to eradicate candida. Kraut juice is immediate and relieving while these powders are longer and slower acting.

Molybdenum, a trace mineral, is also popular as the Herxheimer effect (die off symptoms) is less aggressive. When candida dies it releases acetaldehyde which is a toxin that can not be released from the body easily. Molybdenum assists in this process. Many people suffering from chronic Lyme disease use a dosage for a few months of 1,000 mcg of molybdenum each day. However this is not a mineral to overdo as 15 mg of molybdenum is toxic and molybdenum pulls copper out of the body.

Common signs of candida overgrowth are thrush, a yeast rash most commonly in the warm spots of the body or within skin creases, yeast infection, brain fog, exhaustion and others.

In her GAPS book, McBride says when the body is trying to eliminate toxins and undigested food it exits either through the skin, lungs, mucus membranes, bowels or urine. The undigested food comes from what has leached through the damaged intestinal lining. Elimination of toxins and undigested foods through the urine will manifest as chronic cystitus, bed wetting and thrush. Elimination of the toxins and undigested foods through the mucus membranes can manifest as a yeast infection, pink eye, sinus issues and diarrhea or constipation.

“GAPS™ and Gut and Psychology Syndrome™ are the trademark and copyright of Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride. The right of Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Patent and Designs Act 1988.”  

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*Nourishing Plot is written by Becky Plotner, ND, traditional naturopath, GAPS who sees clients in Rossville, Georgia. Since her son was delivered from the effects of autism (Asperger’s syndrome), ADHD, bipolar disorder/manic depression, hypoglycemia and dyslexia through food she continued her education specializing in Leaky Gut and parasitology through Duke University, finishing with distinction. This is not a news article published by a paper trying to make money. This blog is put out by a mom who sees first hand the effects of nourishing food vs food-ish items. No company pays her for writing these blogs, she considers this a form of missionary work. It is her desire to scream it from the rooftops so that others don’t suffer from the damaging effect of today’s “food”.