Candida albicans, or yeast, can be a potential cause of fatigue, headache, sugar cravings, brain fog or recurrent infection. Having many courses of antibiotic over a lifetime can also lead to overgrowth of this yeast. What is candida? And how do you know if it a problem for you?
Candida is a fungi that lives on the skin, gastrointestinal tract, mouth and mucus membranes of most people in moderate amounts. It is a part of the microflora population of bacteria and yeast that help keep the gastrointestinal tract balanced and healthy. Good bacteria is essential for life and is important for immune response to outside bacteria and micro-organisms. When the good bacteria become out of balance with the bad is when symptoms can occur.
One way to determine if candida may be an issue is to first evaluate your symptoms. Additional ways to check include blood or stool testing. In the event that candida overgrowth is present, there are three lines of attack in eradicating the overgrowth and restoring GI balance.
First, restore balance. There are a number of fantastic herbal anti-fungals that do this quite well. Along with the herbal support, a diet void of refined carbohydrates, yeast, and sugars will “starve” candida so that the anti-fungals can do their work in killing the overgrowth. The final component is to restore normal flora using a probiotic. Probiotics have a blend of good bacteria that can replenish the good guys.
This type of yeast overgrowth is poorly documented in current literature. There have been several small studies looking at candida overgrowth and chronic fatigue syndrome. I have found that this can be a very real issue for many people and that starting with the diet and gut can be the foundation for healing a variety of health concerns.
