Recurring flat and low energy periods or sugar cravings and skin conditions?
You are eating well, and exercising regularly, and you think you have your stress under check now too. But then you will have periods where it all becomes too hard, like a shift has happened but you didn’t do anything different.
Sure, as a female we have started to recognise when it is a shift due to our cycle, but this doesn’t quite feel the same. This time you have real concentration problems the gut starts playing up more than reasonable and you just feel a bit off.
Can I introduce you to Candida. We all have it, but its when it gets out of balance that it becomes the problem. Occurring in 2 forms, yeast and fungal, it destroys the cell wall. Hence why sometimes it is seen as skin or energy problems.
It lives in the mouth, throat, GI & vagina lining and some people are very sensitive to the toxins it secretes, which can be up to 70 different types. Acetaldehyde is one of the main toxins which is produced and can explain why we can feel so lousy! It’s what we get from alcohol too. So feeling like you have a mild hangover may explain a few things?
Candida disrupts the liver from being able to do its detoxification and that means those toxins are now left floating around in the body to cause problems, give you brain fog and bloating and skin irruptions.
Like all microorganisms within us, they are essential to us human beings, and live in symbiosis (meaning happily alongside in the correct proportion) to viruses, fungus and parasites, which all play a role in our health when kept in the correct place and balance. They cannot survive without us and we without them. But that’s the key the correct place and balance.
As Candida is a gutsy little sucker it can permeate into the gut lining and invade other tissues. Therefore, it can quickly change from just a gut problem to a whole body problem, and can colonise and damage other organs. Because it can colonise anywhere in the body, it will impact your immunity, suppress your leucocytes and other immune cytes, hence you feel fatigued!
Candida feeds off sugar and will cause you to crave it. Sending those little messages to the brain, Sugar and now!
How do you know if you have a Candida problem? Sure there are tests that you can go get done, such as the Organic Acid Test and Candida Antibody test, but a home study can be just as accurate with a little patience.
Try this:
For 3 weeks place a glass of water on your bedside table.
First thing when you wake, spit into the glass
Check on the glass during a 45min period (you may need to gently shift it) and if the saliva has grown legs all the way to the bottom of the glass, you have a big problem. If you only have a few strains that are part way down the glass, its not as much of a concern. Although when the saliva hasn’t moved and still remains on the top you are all clear.
So what can you do?
Unfortunately, but you guessed it. You need to starve it.
1. So take out all sugars and most of your carbohydrates folks. What this means is ditching the alcohol, fruit, starchy vegetables, grains and legumes.
You will need to cut these out of your diet and depending on how much of an abundance you have will determine how long it will take to clear the overgrowth. Start with a 4 week period.
If removing these foods is too difficult Oregano Oil 2 -3 times a day can be used. But be careful this is a very strong oil. Or Siberian Fir essential oil.
Caprylic Acid is quite commonly used, but can kill the Candida quite quickly providing other ill feelings as the toxins from the Candida kill off, are felt. If using this approach start with 1/4tsp and build up.
2. Next input Supplements that will remove the Candida
Supplements that are the most effective are those that can latch onto those toxins and pull them from the cells.
General antioxidants you can take include Glutathione, Lyposemic Vit C & Acetyl -L -Carnitine as these can also support the detoxification process, particularly if you are not into your coffee enemas!
3. Replenish the Gut Microbiome
Probiotics are usually the easiest way to do this, along with thyme, garlic and grapefruit seed which are all known to be easy on the good bacteria. You want to make these guys happy remember so they are able to flourish. Generally they like a bit of fibre and SCFA’s to help them along.
So if you are feeling like you had a heavy night of drinking minus the alcohol, think again, you may need to suspect Candida overgrowth my friend.