Lesson 14 – Could Your Health Problems be Yeast Connected?

A new medical condition became known in the 1980’s which is now affecting approximately one-third of the total populations of all Western industrialized countries. The new disease involves a generalized yeast infection produced by the organism once known as Monilia albicans, but now commonly called Candida albicans, which gives rise to a loosely defined syndrome – affecting a series of your body’s systems: digestive, nervous, cardiovascular, lymphatic, respiratory, reproductive, urinary, endocrine, and musculoskeletal. The Candida syndrome manifests itself with symptoms throughout the body, and they can vary over time in one person and in kind and severity among different people.

Candida albicans is a yeast growth present in and on most of us which is normally controlled by our immune defenses and by the usual bacterial flora present in and on the body. But when an ecological change takes place in the internal environment, helpful bacteria tend to be decreased and immune response becomes depressed. Then the yeast begins to increase in the body, especially in the colon (large intestine). These yeast colonies release powerful chemicals (toxins) that may be absorbed into the bloodstream, causing such widely varying symptoms as severe menstrual cramps in women, and lethargy, chronic diarrhea, bladder irritations and infections, asthma, migraine headaches, mental depression, skin eruptions, and many other difficulties in both men and women. Localized areas of Candida overgrowth cause other obvious, recurrent, and persistent infections such as yeast vaginitis, oral thrush, and diaper rash. These problems often herald insidious beginning of the deeper-seated and more dangerous inner infections. Thus, a myriad of symptoms and signs are the Candida-caused human disorders collectively referred to as “candidiasis.”

Fifty years ago, doctors identified Candida albicans as a frequent cause of vagina, mouth, throat, and gastrointestinal tract infections. Now, it’s well known to affect almost all body parts, organs, tissues, and cells. Research physicians suspect Candida as a complication in acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), a contributor to early death in various forms of cancer, a source of infertility in some women, and a mischief-maker in other medical tragedies such as multiple sclerosis, myasthenia gravis, schizophrenia, and arthritis. On rare occasions, yeast overgrowth results in pneumonia, meningitis, and similar devastating body invasions.

Candida is a germ that ordinarily lives by eating dead tissue rather than living matter. When you consume quantities of animal protein like steaks and chops loaded with antibiotics, or when you are prescribed certain antibiotics for the treatment of bacterial infections, these newly introduced drugs tend to turn Candida into a pathogen. A pathogen can thrive on living tissue in your body and is capable of causing infection or disease. Taking cortisone, birth control pills, or other steroid derivatives creates hormonal imbalance in your body. Again, alterations in the yeast organism can occur so that the Candida syndrome may begin.

Looking over this lesson in the Miracle Makeover Course, you will become aware that the Candida syndrome is a result of frailty of the human body. Virtually everyone in Western industrial societies is susceptible to becoming ill with it. Simply said, the unveiling of symptoms in an affected individual means that his or her immune system finally has succumbed to the unnatural effects of “high tech.” lifestyles. Since Candida albicans is universally present, any time a person’s immunity becomes more than slightly compromised, the yeast can overcolonize.

Candida is an “opportunistic organism.” The yeast grows more abundant when your resistance has been lowered because of either nutritional deficiency, infection, or some debilitating agent in the environment. More often than not, such debilitators are man-made; the result of our technological overload.

Furthermore, Candida albicans slowly increases its total area of tissue invasion after being converted to pathogen status. Aspects of our lifestyle that foster continuing yeast growth include not only the taking of oral contraceptives, but also administration of anti-inflammatory cortisone medication, multiple pregnancies, eating foods high in mold or yeast content such as bread, brewer’s yeast, beer, and mushrooms, and having a diet with excess refined or simple sugar carbohydrates, such as candies, sweets, cookies, chips, pastas, and ever-present “junk food.”

How to Recognize When You have Candidiasis

The typical clinical picture of Candida-connected health problems occurs in people of all ages and both sexes. Women have been more likely to exhibit candidiasis, but men now manifest almost as many difficulties. The invasion of Candida albicans shows no major preference for one individual over another, as long as the physiological conditions for yeast overgrowth are ripe.

You may recognize symptoms and signs of having the Candida syndrome by matching your state of health to the following brief description of yeast related problems:

1. You feel lousy – “bad all over” – even having had many types of treatment.

2. The cause of your feeling rotten can’t be identified.

3. Courses of broad spectrum antibiotic drugs that you may have taken for the present problem or for others present or past, haven’t helped much – or even have made you feel worse.

4. You have a subconscious preference for foods made with yeast – bread, beer, wine, alcohol, and certain cheeses.

5. You crave sweets and other sugar-containing edibles.

6. You have an insistent desire for refined carbohydrates – candy, chocolate, cake, cookies, soda pop, “junk foods.”

7. You find that eating sweets or refined carbohydrates gives you a quick pick-up soon followed by a let-down, so that the uncomfortable feelings become worse.

8. Although tests may fail to confirm hypoglycemia, you still suspect that low blood sugar is one of your problems because some of the characteristic symptoms: fatigue, sudden hunger, weakness, trembling, lethargy, a drowsy mental state, headache, cold sweats, dizziness, rapid heartbeat, numbness, irritability, hostility, blurred vision – are often present.

9. You have “chemical sensitivities” or other significant allergy problems.

10. You like to imbibe alcoholic beverages often.

11. You routinely take birth control pills.

12. You have regularly utilized corticosteroids or other anti-inflammatory or immunosuppressive drugs.

13. You have gone through multiple pregnancies.

14. You recently or chronically are troubled by abdominal pain, vaginal infection, pre-menstrual tension, menstrual irregularities, menstrual pain, discomfort during sexual intercourse, a loss of interest in having, sex, prostatitis, impotence, or other reproductive organ difficulties.

15. You are troubled by persistent athlete’s foot, jock itch, fungus infection of the toenails or fingernails (thickening, discoloration, or splitting), or fungus infection of the skin (blisters, peeling, dry scaling, or color changes).

16. You feel tired or dragged out on damp days or when you find yourself around moldy places such as basements, root cellars, and turned over soil in gardens.

17. Especially for Children: Do you suffer with….frequent infections, particularly of the ears, tonsils, bronchitis, or have you had a history of frequent diaper rash? Continuous nasal congestion or drainage? Dark circles under the eyes, or periods of hyperactivity, and poor attention span?

Because all human beings are colonized in a benign fashion by yeasts, skin tests and other tests of the immune system are almost useless for diagnosing the Candida syndrome. For this reason, if you suspect you’re infected with C. albicans, seeing how well you fit this description of signs and symptoms is vital. Candida organisms are usually present on everyone’s mucous membranes, including the mouth, other areas of the digestive tract, and the vagina. Smears and cultures which show – or don’t show – the microbe are of little help in making a diagnosis. Accordingly, the clinical diagnosis of the Candida syndrome is based on the rating you give you own health, your personal clinical history, your physical examination, perhaps a laboratory test or two, and your response to a therapeutic trial of the anti-Candida treatment programs discussed in this lesson.

The Anti-yeast Holistic Therapy Program

Nystatin, (the best tolerated and most easily obtained anti-fungal drug) and various other anti-fungal antibiotic products are merely drug tools in a much larger, full treatment program against the yeast syndrome. Therapy for polysystemic chronic candidiasis has two main goals: 1) to kill the yeast invader (or at least reduce its growth); and 2) to stimulate and repair the patient’s immunity so that in the future his body may come to its own defense. The anti-yeast holistic therapeutic program attempts to accomplish the latter, primarily.

Lactobacillus bifidus, (friendly bacteria) is first introduced to the sterile intestines of the infant as a result of breastfeeding. Large numbers can soon be observed in the baby’s feces. Friendly bacteria can naturally proliferate and thrive in the human gut unless they are attacked by broad spectrum antibiotic drugs (administered for the treatment of infection or already in the meat you eat in the form of residues from all the antibiotics given to the animal to keep them “healthy”). These “friendly” bacteria help keep Candida from proliferating in the gut because they actually stimulate the immune system through vitamin and enzyme production as well as being a part of the immune system itself.

Using lactobacilli cultures, the holistic method of treatment involves the following:

For infant thrush, treat the mother (especially if she is breastfeeding) with oral supplements of L. bifidus. “Paint” the nipples before each infant feeding with a concentrated culture of L. bifidus.

For vaginitis, use implants of fresh (sugar-free) yogurt in the vagina – or water plus yogurt douches.

For intestinal infections, eat one or more cups of yogurt, three or four times daily or take L. acidophilus concentrates that are high in acidophilin, the naturally occurring antibiotic/anticarcinogen.

For milk-intolerant patients or those with outright milk allergies, an acceptable way to avoid adverse reactions is to introduce potent amounts of the L. acidophilus organism in small increments, beginning with one-quarter teaspoonful of powder or liquid – or one acidophilus capsule – two or three times daily into the gastrointestinal system.

Ingesting Garlic to Reduce Yeast Overgrowth

Garlic is highly successful in killing C. albicans – or at least in reducing Candida overgrowth. Garlic can be taken as fresh whole cloves or in an odorless aged extract form. Both show broad spectrum anti-fungal and anti-bacterial activity at concentrations nontoxic to human cells and tissues, but the aged garlic extract appears to be better tolerated in terms of digestive comfort, and sociability. Onion, clove, and horseradish also seem to have similar anti-fungal properties.

Much of the scientific research on garlic concerns its anti-microbial activity against many types of bacteria and against opportunistic and infectious fungi, including C. albicans. Further, concentrated extract of garlic was more effective than nystatin in several studies of pathogenic yeasts, particularly in complications from candidiasis. Oral administration of garlic extract cured yeast infections after ten days in chicks inoculated with C. albicans.

Wakunaga Central Research Laboratory lists more than thirty compounds isolated from garlic. The main medicinally active constituents include the amino acid alliin, the anti-fungal active ingredient allicin, and a natural enzyme, alliinase. Studies show that effectiveness requires that human dose levels be adequate and that garlic be taken daily. A usual daily dosage for antiyeast therapy is three capsules filled with aged yeast extract at each meal or fresh raw garlic, if you can stand it. The liquid is also appropriate topical medication for treating thrush and acne. Some people use the aged garlic liquid as the “oil” in an oil and lemon juice salad dressing each day.

Candidiasis treatment with Caprylic Acid

Nutritional supplementation with naturally occurring short-chain fatty acids, such as caprylic acid, has been found to help restore and maintain a normal balance of yeast, bacteria and other micro-organisms in the colon. Such a candidiasis treatment approach fits well with the philosophy of the holistic physician. When combined with other natural anti-fungal substances, such as garlic and yogurt, caprylic acid may achieve a broader spectrum of anti-yeast activity than can many prescription drugs now used against established yeast infections.

Ingestion of complexed caprylic acid seems to have a time-release action, allowing the fatty acid to undergo slow hydrolysis (release) throughout the intestinal tract. The finely powdered resin complex tends to coat the walls of the stomach and intestines without upsetting the normal balance of gastrointestinal flora.

Vaginal itching and burning were relieved with caprylic acid treatment in a study of 104 patients. Later examination with laboratory methods showed that 92 women (88%), were considered clinically cured and free of the organism. Of these, 53 were re-examined four months following completion of therapy and were found to have no recurrence of the infection.

Rapid relief of yeast vaginitis has also been observed with the use of a buffered sorbic acid solution. Some commercial products containing sorbic acid as a douche and mouthwash are now available at some drug and health store outlets. Patients with long-standing yeast infections in which standard medications such as nystatin and caprylic acid had been ineffective were treated with sorbic acid. Prompt relief from discomfort occurred with marked soothing effect. Healing was rapid with repeated applications.

At recommended dosages, caprylic acid is non-toxic and non-sensitizing. Very large doses can cause mucosal irritation and produce diarrhea and nausea. Some patients may suffer with fatigue and flu-like symptoms during the first two to five days of use. This reaction is thought to be a yeast “die-off”, a re-absorption phenomenon that is described as the Herxheimer reaction.

Tabebuia/La Pacho/Taheebo/Pau D’Arco Tea

Although not touted as a cure for Candida overgrowth, the bark of the tabebuia/la pacho/taheebo tree appears to be helping people whose health is affected by the yeast. Taheebo tea is being used by thousands of Candida syndrome patients across North America and in other industrialized Western countries. The la pacho trees grow in South American rain forests, especially in Brazil and Argentina. Legends about the curative powers of pau d’arco, or taheebo reach back to the time of the ancient Incas.

Taheebo herbal tea is probably best used as a synergistic remedy combined with other therapeutic agents. When used alone, the effects may be too subtle to be appreciated, although some patients do report that they are less sensitive to molds, chemicals, and foods. Many state that local symptoms persist but their general feeling of physical and mental well-being is enhanced.

The diuretic effects of taheebo tea make consultation with your holistic physician advisable, to minimize any possible imbalance in major minerals such as sodium, potassium, calcium or magnesium, as well as trace minerals.

Taheebo tea is brewed by adding one tablespoonful of the bark to eight cups water and then boiling for about 5-10 minutes. It must then sit for twenty minutes before drinking. It is also available in capsules or as an herbal extract in most health food stores.

Could Candida Even be Affecting your Mind?

The Candida syndrome causes an increased need for protein, but often the protein is poorly absorbed in the body. Incompletely digested proteins may be delivered to the blood through the portals of entry in the intestinal tract produced by the invasive mycelia of the fungal form of C. albicans. This may explain why many individuals who have chronic Candida overgrowth show a wide variety of food and environmental allergies. These incompletely digested dietary proteins can then travel into the bloodstream and exert a powerful antigenic assault on the immune system, which is seen as allergy, even producing a wide variety of effects such as cerebral allergy, with depression, mood swings, and irritability being a result. Chronic yeast infection with systematic allergic and toxic effects is a widespread problem but one that is both correctable and preventable…Because the allergic (or toxic) response in the brain leads to anxiety, crying, depression and diminished intellectual function, almost all such are eventually referred to the psychiatrist for diagnosis and treatment, after extensive diagnostic efforts have failed to establish a physical basis for the illness…The psychiatrist, no matter how conscientiously he may try to solve the mystery of illness, will not succeed because the condition is physical rather than psychiatric in its cause…Endless years of mental and physical suffering ensue because, once the psychiatric path has been chosen, virtually all efforts cease in the search for physical correctable causes of the patient’s problems…Symptoms are so varied and changeable and so rarely associated with laboratory, X-ray, or other objective abnormalities, that each new symptom tends to be dismissed as just one more “psychosomatic” or “neurotic” complaint…The patient eventually becomes reluctant to describe complaints, often preferring to answer simply, “I feel fine.”

The Candida Control Diet

Introducing the VENYL DIET (Vegetables, Eggs, Nuts, Yogurt and Legumes) which has been shown to be of great service in getting Candida under control and maintaining a symptom-free life. Of course, the eggs should be free-range eggs whenever possible (taken from chickens that have been allowed to roam free), the yogurt should be sugar-free (add your own spices or flavorings if you like) and the nuts should exclude the high sugar content varieties like peanuts, pistachios, pecans, etc. (The nuts should be free from excessive salt and raw whenever possible.)

Foods you can eat:

(Studies by John Rippon, Ph.D., indicate that in spite of their fiber content, carbohydrates in fruits are broken down to simple sugars more readily than carbohydrates in vegetables. Accordingly, fruits may promote the growth of candida in your digestive tract and should be eaten more sparingly and cautiously.)

Other Foods You can Eat Cautiously

These foods you should only eat after you have succeeded in bringing your symptoms under control.

High Carbohydrate Vegetables: (Sugar is added to some canned or frozen vegetables which would make the carbohydrate content even higher.)

Sweet Corn

White Potatoes (baked with skins on)

Sweet Potatoes (baked with skins on)

Milk, (whole or low fat)

Whole Grains: Wheat, Barley, Oats and Rye – all the gluten containing grains can be problematic in your anti-yeast regimen. Why, you may ask, what is so bad about them? Firstly, the gluten is interacting with any sugars in your system, natural or otherwise, to rise and expand just as you see when baker’s yeast is added to bread dough before baking. It is the sugar content that makes the yeast effective. So, in the same way you should avoid sugar of any type in at least the first stages of your anti-yeast regime. Also, try to stay to the other grains which do not contain gluten: corn, millet, rice, quinoa, amaranth, etc. Better to stay with your VENYL DIET completely to gain control of your yeast problem, at least at first.

Foods You Must Avoid:

1. Sugar and sugar-containing Foods: Sugar and other quick-acting carbohydrates, including sucrose, fructose, maltose, lactose, glycogen, glucose, mannitol, sorbitol, galactose, monosaccharides and polysaccharides. Also, avoid honey, molasses, maple syrup, maple sugar, date sugar and turbinado sugar.

2. Yeast, Breads and Pastries: Raised baked goods, including breads, rolls, coffee cakes and pastries containing baker’s yeast.

3. Alcoholic Beverages: Wine, beer, whiskey, brandy, gin, rum, vodka and other fermented liquors and liqueurs. Also, fermented beverages such as cider and root beer.

4. Malt Products: Malted milk drinks, cereals and candy. (Malt is sprouted grain that is kiln – dried and used in the preparation of many processed foods and beverages.)

5. Condiments, Sauces and Vinegar-containing foods: Mustard, ketchup, Accent (monosodium glutamate); Worcestershire, steak, barbecue, chili, shrimp and soy sauces; pickles, pickled vegetables, relishes, green olives, sauerkraut, horseradish, mince meat and tamari. Avoid vinegar of all kinds and vinegar-containing foods such as mayonnaise and salad dressing. (Freshly squeezed lemon juice may be used as a substitute for vinegar in salad dressing prepared with unprocessed vegetable oil.)

6. Processed and Smoked Meats: Pickled and smoked meats and fish including sausages, hot dogs, corned beef, pastrami and pickled tongue.

7. Dried and Candied Fruits: Raisins, apricots, dates, prunes, figs, pineapple, etc. (These are a notorious medium on which Candida yeast thrives).

8. Leftovers: Molds grow in left-over food unless it’s properly refrigerated. Freezing is better.

Shopping Tips

1. Feature whole, fresh, raw, (or lightly steamed) vegetables as much as possible.

2. Avoid foods labeled “enriched” (they contain yeast).

3. Since many, and perhaps most canned, packaged and processed foods contain hidden ingredients, including sugar, dextrose and other carbohydrate products, avoid them.

4. If you must use canned or packaged foods, Read Labels Carefully.

5. Use fresh fruits and vegetables. Commercially canned products often contain yeasts and added sugar.

6. Avoid bottled, frozen and canned juices. If you wish juice, buy fresh fruit and prepare your own juice.

7. Most commercially available nuts are roasted in vegetable oil and contain additives. Buy nuts in the shell, or shelled nuts from a natural food store. Avoid peanuts since they contain mold. (And nuts of all kinds, like other foods, may become contaminated with molds, so be careful when shopping.)

8. All commercial breads, cakes and crackers contain yeast. If you wish yeast-free breads, you’ll have to obtain them from a special bakery or bake your own. There are now many kinds of Rice Cakes available without yeast or sugar. Most children and adults like them. They’re good with nut butters.

9. Use cold-pressed vegetable oils (such as sunflower, safflower, linseed and corn). Of special benefit is olive oil since it causes the body to inhibit yeast proliferation. (To make salad dressing, combine the oil with fresh lemon juice.)

Since you are already taking a high quality Vitamin and Mineral supplement as a part of your Miracle Makeover program we needn’t stress the importance of your body receiving all important nutrients in order to build up your immune system against the yeast invader.

And You Must Avoid……..

Poisons and pollutants of all kinds including those which contaminate the air, soil and water.

You’ve already made a good start with throwing out all your aluminum pots and pans, reducing your intake of mercury and seeking to lessen your exposure to lead in the environment. We can’t emphasize enough, the necessity of keeping your immune system as uncompromised as possible in overcoming the yeast invader. If your symptoms have gone so far as to even feel bad in a moldy room or when you smell a strong perfume, chances are your immune system is already on overload and you must especially respect the signal your body is giving you.

If you do recognize many of your symptoms in this lesson maybe you’re asking: “What else do I need to do?

Answer: “Many things. Here’s why: When you’re sick or don’t feel well, your health problems are nearly always due to a variety of causes rather than a single one. And, although taking anti-candida medication and avoiding sugar and yeast containing foods will help you regain your health, you’ll also need to pay attention to many other factors. If you’re allergic to foods and inhalants you must receive appropriate treatment for those sensitivities. You also need a favorable environment, including fresh air, sunlight, pure water and the loving support of those around you.

A few final words: Although your health disorder is yeast connected, we’re treating your immune system and not just Candida albicans. So be patient. Your problems didn’t develop overnight and they won’t go away in a few days or a few weeks or months. Yet, if you’re like most of those who have gone through this holistic yeast program, be of good cheer! You will get well…and the Lord can lay His healing hand on you in every way: physically, mentally and spiritually.

For further reading: “The Yeast Connection” by Dr. Crook, and “The Yeast Syndrome” by John Parks Trowbridge, M.D. and Morton Walker.