What happens when you are suffering from a bunch of seemingly unrelated symptoms and all the blood tests indicate that there is nothing wrong with you?
Is it all in your head?
Definitely not! You could have an undetected problem known as a Candida overgrowth or Candidiasis.
What the Heck Is a Candida Overgrowth?
You might have heard of Candida in the context of a vaginal yeast infection but the Candida I am talking about is the one that changes from a yeast to a fungus within your intestinal tract and spreads like a wild fire.
Everyone has this yeast, called Candida, living in harmony with other microbes within their intestines. We have “good bacteria” that keep these Candida yeast in check. In small populations Candida yeast isn’t harmful but when allowed to overgrow into a condition called Candidiasis, they can become any where from annoying to debilitating.
What Are the Symptoms?
Symptoms vary from person to person. You may only have a couple or you may have them all. Above and below are some of the typical symptoms of Candidiasis:
- intestinal gas, bloating, abdominal fullness
- constipation and/or diarrhea
- heartburn, acid reflux, gastritis
- trouble sleeping,
- foggy brain, poor memory/concentration
- allergies
- skin problems
- hormonal imbalances
- fatigue
Who Can Be Affected?
Candidiasis can seriously affect your health or the health of your spouse or children. Yes, men, women, babies, toddlers, children and teenagers can all be infested with a Candida overgrowth in their intestines known as Candidiasis.
Who Can Diagnose You and Your Family?
You can. You must diagnose yourself because it is highly unlikely that your doctor will.
Why?
Remember that your doctor is trained in surgery and medication, but he/she is not trained in nutritional approaches to health.
As far as I am aware, there are no scientific studies supporting the existence of Candidiasis as a health issue, and there are no medical tests to confirm Candidiasis.
Believe It or Not
No matter what the medical establishment says, I know for a fact that Candidiasis does exist. You or your family may be suffering needlessly right now because no one has told you about Candidiasis.
You Decide
If you have Candidiasis and choose to ignore this information or discount it because it is not confirmed by your medical doctor, be forewarned; there is no exercise you can do, no diet that you can follow, no supplement that you can take that will restore you to normal health. You will waste all your time, effort and money if you try.
If you have Candidiasis YOU MUST use a six-pronged system for treating it. Only then can you experience great health.
Do You Feel Energetic, Vibrant and Radiant?
If not, you may have Candidiasis.
DO YOU HAVE CANDIDIASIS?
Four Step Symptomatology Method Candida Checklists
Step One: Have an honest look at your medical history.
How many times (to the best of your recollection) have you had antibiotics?
0-5 times____5-10 times____10-20 times___ Over 20 times____
Have you ever been on birth control pills? ____
Have you ever been pregnant? ____
Have you ever eaten a high-sugar diet? ____
Have you ever tested your pH balance and found it was acidic? ____
Have you ever had cortisone or prednisone? ____
Have you ever had radiation? ____
Have you ever had surgery? ____
Have you ever experienced an intense period of high stress? ____
Ask yourself the above questions only to establish whether Candida could potentially be a problem for you. The more “yes” answers you give, the more likely you are to have developed Candida. You must complete the next three steps and then look at the entire evidence, not just pieces of it, to draw your final conclusion.
Step Two: Evaluate Your Symptoms
Candida affects each person differently. No two people have identical symptoms, but the following questionnaire highlights the symptoms most commonly associated with Candida.
An important note: You can have vaginal yeast infections and not have Candida and you can have Candida and not get vaginal yeast infections. However, if you have repeated vaginal yeast infections, then you should be suspicious of Candida.
Complete the following quiz by putting an x in the blank for any symptoms that currently apply to you.
- Do you form gas or bloat when you eat? ____
- Do you have acid reflux, heartburn or gastritis? ____
- Are you prone to constipation or diarrhea or both? _____
- Do you have an itchy nose? _____
- Do you have ear sensitivity/ringing/itching or fluid in your ears? _____
- Do you have a dry mouth? _____
- Are you hypothyroid or suffer with cold hands or feet? _____
- Do you have brain fog, which causes you to have trouble thinking clearly, poor memory or poor concentration? _____
- Do you suffer from fatigue for no reason? _____
- Does your vision get blurry then clear then blurry? _____
- Are you hypoglycemic? Indicated by being shaky or irritable if late for a meal, sleepy after a meal, or sweaty during sleep? _____
- Do you have deep pains in your legs, arms and back? ____
- Do you have cravings for sugar, carbohydrates or alcohol? _____
- Do you suffer with continuous or repeated vaginal burning, itching, or discharge? _____
- Do you have depression, anxiety, or loss of interest and/or pleasure? _____
- Do you have trouble sleeping? _____
- Do you have numbness, burning or tingling in any of your body parts? _____
Total Score:_________
If you have a total of 4 or more symptoms, consider Candida a possibility.
Step Three: Rate Your Energy Level
On a scale of 0 to 10, zero is shoot me I might as well be dead, and 10 is an achievable level of energy.
Current energy __________
Fatigue rated at 7 or less, is the only symptom common to each person with Candida. If you score 8, 9 or 10 it is unlikely that your symptoms are related to Candida. If you score an 8, 9, or 10 for part of the day and 7 and below for the rest of the day, then you likely have a low blood sugar problem.
If your energy goes up and down within a day, but doesn’t go any higher than a 7, you could have both low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) and Candida.
People with Candida really struggle with their energy and the ability to feel well. Those with low blood sugar may have swings of energy levels but generally only have varying periods of feeling unwell.
Step Four: Do the Candida Home Spit Test
First thing in the morning, before you put ANYTHING in your mouth, get a clear glass. Fill with filtered water and work up a bit of saliva, then spit it into the glass of water. Check the water every 15 minutes or so for up to one hour without touching the glass.
If you have Candida, you will see strings (like legs) traveling down into the water from the saliva floating on the top, “cloudy” saliva will sink to the bottom of the glass, or cloudy specks will seem to be suspended in the water. If there are no strings and the saliva is still floating after at least one hour, then you don’t likely have Candida.
The spit test is not foolproof and should not be used as your primary decision-making tool but it is an excellent guideline when paired with the other symptoms you may have.
Additional Information for Consideration
It is common for people with Candida to:
- Be sensitive to tobacco smoke, perfumes, insecticides, fabric shop odors and other chemicals.
- Feel worse on damp, muggy days or in moldy places.
- Have moderate, severe or persistent athlete’s foot, ringworm, jock itch or other chronic fungous infections of the skin or nails.
- Crave sugar, bread or alcoholic beverages.
- Get minimal results from taking nutritional supplements.
- Have multiple health concerns that seem totally unrelated.
- Struggle to feel well.
- Not find a medical reason for their health concerns.
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW
Candida Yeast Is Tenacious.
It won’t leave without a fight. Many people have tried very restricted diets in hopes of choking off the Candida’s food supply and killing it. This might provide temporary relief but soon after this person returns to normal eating their health starts to take a downturn again.
Are You Sure It Is Gone?
If you have treated Candidiasis in the past you might think that you are now safe. In my experience, most people do not learn how to treat Candidiasis in a way that kills the overgrowth and keeps it from returning. If you started experiencing new or old health problems months after your Candida program, it is very likely that you have Candidiasis again.
Food Allergy Alert
The longer you have Candida, the more likely you are to develop a food allergy or food sensitivity.
Beware
If you have a diagnosis for your health concern such as:
- fibromyalgia
- chronic fatigue syndrome
- acid reflux
- depression
- food allergies
You have a name for your problem, but you still don’t know WHY you have the problem.
Beware; Candidiasis might be WHAT is causing your problems.
Do You Want Your Life Back?
The people that have been lucky enough to discover and successfully treat their Candida overgrowth with our 6-pronged Candida program, now have their lives back.
Here are just a few testimonials:
“My 24-yr. old daughter is starting week 4 tomorrow on the Candida cleanse. She can’t remember the last time she felt this great. She is no longer having problems with insomnia…. no longer feeling depressed….. no longer having headaches….. the pain that she has had for years in her hip is gone… and she can now sleep on her side again…. she has also started working out again…… my going to your workshop has changed her life… and I don’t think that there are words that can justly express my gratitude to you.”
“Despite taking hundreds of dollars’ worth of supplements every month for over 12 years, I was constantly under the weather — nothing very serious but, far too often, I was down with something. It turns out that I have been battling a major Candida infestation for at least 15 years — perhaps longer. It was the result of being on anti-biotics for an extended period trying to deal with a bacterial infection. Well, I have been treating myself for Candida for less than a month and I am now in the best health I have been in since December 1991.”
If You Have Candidiasis What Should You Do?
We have put together a detailed e-manual that walks you step-by-step through the phases of treating Candida. It is an instant download included for free when you purchase the Candida Package from our online store (the products you need for a 4 week Candida program) HERE.
Or, if you wish to read the e-manual separately and then purchase the products you need, it is available HERE.
The e-manual contains the following:
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Understanding Candidiasis pages 2-3
Making Your Diagnosis pages 4-8
How Do You Treat Candida- The Overview pages 8-13
STEP BY STEP CANDIDA TREATMENT pages 13-30
- Step 1 The Diet Details pages 13-22
- Step 2 How to Eradicate the Excess Candida pages 22-25
- Step 3 How to Replenish Your Natural Healthy Intestinal Bacteria page 25
- Step 4 How to Supply All Nutrients for Healing page 26
- Step 5 How to Boost Your Immune System page 26
- Step 6 How to Ensure Proper Elimination pages 26-32
What Your Candida Program Will Look Like page 33-34
Concluding Your Candida Cleanse pages 34-37
Dealing with Resistant Candida pages 37-39
Unwanted House Guests (Parasites) pages 39-42
Don’t Let Candida Return pages 42-43
Candida Diet Recipes pages 44-51
Your Candida Program will look like this:
Before Breakfast:
- 1 Pkt HIT probiotics (contains 2 tablets)
After Breakfast:
- 1 THP (Total Health Pack)
- 1 Candida Stop [increasing to 2 caps then 3 caps as outlined in the e-manual]
After Lunch:
- [1 Candida Stop when ready, increasing to 2 caps then 3 caps as outlined in the e-manual]
After Dinner:
- 1 Candida Stop [increasing to 2 caps then 3 caps as outlined in the e-manual]
- [1 THP if you are in need of extra nutritional or adrenal support]
- [1 Milk Thistle if using for liver support]
Before Bed:
- 1 Pkt HIT probiotics (contains 2 tablets)
- 2-5 Magnesium if indicated
- Bowel aid if necessary (Prolax/Concentrace)
Adding Silver Biotics: Once you are at the highest dose of Candida Stop 2 caps three times [if you are under 120lbs] a day or 3 caps three 3 times a day if you have a severe case of Candida or if you weigh more than 120 lbs, you will add 2 tsp Silver Biotics twice a day (any time of day is fine but some people find it easiest to take on an empty stomach).
Purchase your Candida Package to get started on recovering your energy and vibrancy now, GO HERE.
BEFORE AND AFTER THE CANDIDA PROGRAM, REMEMBER THESE 5 CRITICAL LIFESTYLE STRATEGIES
(For More Details Go HERE)
- Drink ½ ounce of purified water per pound of body weight daily.
- Eat 2 cups of vegetables daily, not including lettuce, potato, peas, corn and mushrooms. You can eat them; they just don’t count.
- Reduce caffeine intake to no more than 16 ounces of organic coffee per day. Zero to 8 ounces is preferable.
- Have four to five sugar free days per week.
- Find exercise you enjoy, that energizes you and get movement at least 4 times per week.
Information made available through this website is provided for educational or reference purposes only. Nutritional Therapy and/or Coaching is not intended as a diagnosis, treatment, prescription, or cure for any disease, mental or physical, and is not intended as a substitute for regular medical care.
Copyright Brenda Eastwood, RNCP and Megan Boff, RNCP 2016 – Candida, Is It All In Your Head
MaximumResults@shaw.ca www.BrendaEastwood.com www.TotalHealthPack.com
Would you like to use this article in your E-zine or website? You may, if you include this complete write-up with it: Brenda Eastwood is a holistic health expert who specializes in Women’s Health Issues. Her expertise stems from over 35 years’ experience as a Registered Nutritional Consulting Practitioner. This includes ongoing research, 17 years running a successful private practice, presenting hundreds of seminars and workshops, as well as coaching clients through her unique online Inner Circle program. Today she is reaching out to even more women through her regular article contributions to HANS (Health Action Magazine) and her book “Get off the PMS and Perimenopausal Roller Coaster, Learn 9 Natural Fast Track Solutions to Balanced Hormones”. For more information on Brenda Eastwood please visit www.BrendaEastwood.com or for information on her Total Health Packs visit www.TotalHealthPack.com
