Your digestive system houses a type of yeast called Candida albicans. Candida yeast help your body break down food that passes through the intestines. A sudden spike in your gut's candida population causes a condition known as candidiasis. Alternative medicine proponents claim that following an anti-candida diet that is low in sugar may improve candidiasis symptoms.
Sugar
Candida yeast feed on sugars that pass through the digestive tract. Eating large amounts of sugar may trigger a rapid proliferation of candida, causing symptoms of candidiasis. The candida diet claims to keep your candida population under control by limiting the amount of sugar you consume. Reducing sugar consumption starves the yeast and causes them to die. Returning your candida yeast levels to normal purportedly improves symptoms of candidiasis.
Candidiasis Symptoms
Everyone has candida yeast in their intestines, and many people never experience candidiasis. According to dietitian Janet Hull, an alternative medicine advocate, a variety of factors may trigger an outbreak of candida. Artificial sweeteners, processed oils, high-fructose corn syrup, oral contraceptives, antibiotics and other chemicals may cause candida yeast to proliferate. Symptoms of candidiasis include abdominal pain, irritability, weight gain, decreased energy, gastrointestinal distress, fungal infections, a white film on your tongue, mood swings, depression, itching and skin blemishes.
Candida Diet
The candida diet consists of three stages designed to kill candida yeast and restore normal bacteria levels in your intestines. The central purpose of the candida diet is to limit sugar consumption. In the initial four-week detoxification stage, dieters eliminate all fruit, processed foods, artificial sweeteners, caffeine, aged cheese, alcohol, starchy vegetables and sugary foods from their meals. The second phase of the candida diet allows you to reintroduce certain foods, such as beans, starchy vegetables, berries, apples and pears. The final phase of the candida diet requires you to repopulate your gut with beneficial bacteria by eating probiotic yogurt, sauerkraut or kimchi. Some dieters stay in the final phase of the candida diet indefinitely to prevent the return of candidiasis symptoms.
Considerations
Although alternative medicine advocates claim that sugar, processed foods and drugs trigger candida growth, most conventional medicine practitioners do not accept candidiasis as a legitimate diagnosis, reports Mayo Clinic internist Brent Bauer. Some people following a candida diet may experience improved mood, increased energy, weight loss or other symptom relief. However, these effects likely occur because dieters eat fewer processed foods and more whole grains, vegetables and lean protein. Discuss your situation with a doctor before beginning the candida diet. Symptoms you attribute to candidiasis could be due to a serious medical condition.
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