Originally published May 8 2008
Control Candida in Two Weeks
by Kal Sellers
(NaturalNews) The need for this article is both current and long-standing. The current Candida diets are unhealthy, lengthy, unwise and simply not all that effective. On the other hand, there is no reason that Candida cannot be totally controlled in a few days to two weeks for most cases -- a few cases may take longer than that.
At the roots of the Candida problem are several issues, few of which are ever addressed in a way that shows any understanding of nature and her laws.
Before we address those issues, let us just review a few points of basic Candida pathology.
First: Candida albicans is one type of yeast. It normally exists in a healthy gut and helps it to function better. It, as with all the flora in the gut, escapes sometimes into the blood and is corralled by the immune system in a few hours. Candida is one species of yeast. It is not pathogenic unless it mutates (which it does in the right environment) and it will be unaffected, generally, by other yeasts and yeast by-products taken into the body.
Second: Candida as a pathology first appeared as a consequence of antibiotics, which do not kill Candida, but which kill other friendly flora which would prevent Candida from overgrowing in the same way many trees in a rain forest prevent one species from owning everything.
When Candida appeared as a pathology, people getting diagnosed were very sick, on the verge of death. This condition is actually very rare, even though Candida seems to be everywhere.
Third: Candida mutates when given lots of food and no restraint of territory (i.e. the other friendly flora have died). It will become something pathogenic that is believed to drill holes in the intestines and enter the blood en masse. Once there, it roots in, so to speak, and is difficult to remove.
When Candida is in the blood in any quantity, the person will have a variety of symptoms and will not feel well. The person may have a compromised immune system or have evidence of fungal growth on the skin or mucus membranes. The person may be tired or otherwise affected systemically.
Fourth: Candida lives off of sugar and alcohol. It prefers slightly fermented sugars.
With this challenge, how can we regain control quickly and effectively without putting someone on a diet that is worse than the disease?
To answer this, we need to simply understand that there are three key areas that need to be addressed when we treat Candida.
1. Inhibiting the Candida itself
2. Healing the immune system to respond to the problem
3. Feeding the person, while starving the Candida
1) Inhibiting the Candida itself is the simplest step to address. It involves using substances that will inhibit Candida without any harm to the person.
Traditionally, I have used Dr. Christopher's Original Formulas Yellow Dock Combination. This formula is only sold in the bulk now because of its content of comfrey (which I believe to be integral to its effectiveness and desirable in any type of yeast problem). Although it is available encapsulated, the ingredients are different from the bulk formula. I use the powdered bulk formula either stirred into juice or encapsulated.
I also like bayberry and everyone uses Pau d' Arco, which is certainly effective.
These herbs together or separate will inhibit Candida growth. This is helpful, though not necessarily vital, to the overall Candida battle. I would probably use all three of the above options in small doses every day for the two weeks.
When any of my young children get thrush, we always have cured it in just a day or two with white oak bark tea (placed on the nipple and in the mouth of the baby). White oak bark is strongly anti-fungal. White oak bark is in the Yellow Dock Combination.
This is pretty much all I do from a standpoint of a direct attack on Candida. I do not use Colloidal Silver because it is such an indiscriminate killer.
2) Healing the immune system to respond to the problem involves several levels of healing activity.
These steps are as follows:
a. Flora replacement is done with rejuvelac. Our method of using rejuvelac in smoothies for optimal value is treated in detail in Traci's Transformational Kitchen Recipe Collection, found on (www.bestfoodist.com) .
The prudent use of fruit and why it is vital to use during Candida troubles is treated later in this article.
In addition to replacing the over 300 varieties of flora in the gut with rejuvelac, it is important to feed the new seedlings (metaphorically speaking) plenty of healthy fertilizer and superfoods. This means lots of raw vegetation (flora eats the cellulose we cannot digest) and lots of inulin. Inulin is extracted from burdock or elecampane root by decocting it for several hours (instructions for decocting are found in Preparations Printout available free on (www.KalsSchool.com) on the Downloads page under Free Info).
b. Immune foods are the next step. This always means a superfood containing at least spirulina and seaweeds, but the immune food I use most in my practice is what I call I-Charge (Immune-Charge). This is made from equal parts of specially prepared tinctures of garlic, cayenne and Echinacea (you can email me to get the recipe).
In addition to this, lots of healthy minerals from sea salt, seaweeds and mineral springs (such as TJ Clark Mine produces in Utah) will replace minerals needed as markers and ingredients for key immune response systems and components.
c. Reactive foods are the final and absolutely vital step in healing the immune system. You can read about food reactions in detail in an article called Understanding Food Reactions, which is available for free at (www.KalsSchool.com) on the Downloads Page, under the Free Info tab.
Food reactions will be discussed again later in connection with the next point, but in relation to the immune system, it is vital to understand that if you are constantly taking in foods that you react to, your endocrine system (and all immune system components) will become exhausted, stressed and depleted.
Thus there is no chance of having a healthy immune system so long as you are eating foods that you have a reaction to on a regular basis.
In the above mentioned article, "Understanding Food Reactions" the subject of how to discover, cure and prevent food reactions is treated in detail.
3) Feeding the person, while starving the Candida is the least understood step in the process of healing Candida quickly, though ironically, it is the most discussed and the most effort is placed here.
Generally, the position is taken that anything that might feed Candida must be eliminated and this would include all sources of sugar and any slowly-breaking-down starch or difficult-to-digest food.
This position is about half right. We will deal with the issues in more detail now.
I will break this subject up like the others and cover the details that should be understood or learned differently.
a. No fermentation is the first step in feeding the person but not the Candida. Sugar that is fermented feeds Candida, but not you. This includes alcohol, but also includes any sugar that can be chemically changed through fermentation.
Regular sugar feeds Candida too, but if that sugar is usable to you, it will feed you much faster than the Candida and is less of a threat. Fermented sugar only feeds Candida and cancer cells. Not good.
Here we shall drop the first very important bombshell on my list: The most important key to avoiding fermentation is to digest your food completely.
This means several things:
i. Chew your food very thoroughly. I would not be surprised to discover that raw foodists who are still struggling with Candida, universally fail to chew their food to a paste before swallowing. This means that holes and chasms exist in the food that will resist mixing with digestive juices, but which will be in the perfect condition to ferment.
ii. Take cayenne pepper in water (work up to � teaspoon of cayenne in any amount of water) 15 minutes before each meal to optimize digestion like nothing else on earth I know of.
iii. Renew your digestion with at least monthly 3-5 day juice fasts where you consume lots of carrot juice with lots of greens (preferably including chard, beets and greens, parsley and asparagus). This will take your digestion back in time about 20 years and will help you avoid overeating, which is the next point.
iv. Avoid overeating as this poses the same problem as inadequate chewing. This will leave food that ferments instead of digesting.
v. Avoid foods that you cannot digest, such as your reactive foods (discussed below) and processed foods and wheat, dairy, white sugar, protein powders, etc. All grains and beans should be sprouted if dry (green beans are okay to eat without sprouting). Undigested food particles in the blood are guaranteed to feed every undesirable condition and invader, but not you.
vi. Avoid combining proteins and starches and fruit with anything. Always eat fruit on an empty stomach. More details about this rule and its exceptions can be found in Traci's Transformational Health Principles, available for free at (www.bestfoodist.com) . Fruit will heal you and will actually repel Candida in several ways provided that it digests, rather than ferments. This means eating it on an empty stomach and chewing it completely.
b. Having no food reactions is a good goal. A strong reaction to a food eaten regularly, will not only exhaust the immune system, it will also ensure that food and other foods eaten at the same time do not fully digest.
These undigested food particles will feed yeast, thicken the blood, and create acidity and disease.
Reactive foods do not digest because the immune system responds to such an extent that digestion is stopped or greatly inhibited. This will also exhaust the immune system such that it cannot fight Candida overgrowths that do appear.
c. Lots of healthy glucose is the last thing that anyone expects to hear recommended on a Candida diet. I think it is important to notice, however, that people with Candida troubles are already sick, I do not understand how starving them will help.
There is nothing in this world you need more than high quality glucose and oxygen. The oxygen is a separate discussion, but glucose is vital. Your body knows this and the process of replacing glucose, if it is absent from the body, is one that will definitely feed Candida.
The first thing that happens when your body is low on glucose is that a hormone is secreted from your brain saying that it is starving and it needs more glucose. This hormone (called ACTH) causes the adrenals to release cortisol (which causes a mess if released too often due to stress or bad dietary choices) which causes two important things to happen: First, the body cells release protein (for manufacture into glucose in the liver -- a process that pulls out water, minerals and other nutrients and causes deficiency). Second, those same cells become glucose resistant.
The protein is taken to the liver where a toxic form of glucose synthesis takes place. Understand that this process is natural and normal and no problem for your body if it happens once in a while. When it happens a lot, there is a problem.
The glucose is released into the blood and the brain takes up all it can. Immediately, however, there is an excess of glucose (a sugar) in the blood which your body cells will not readily take up because the cortisol made them glucose resistant.
Normal cells will not take it up, but cancer cells and Candida have no such inhibitions!
The body will whip the pancreas to release high levels of insulin to get that sugar into the cells (where it is needed) and out of the blood (where it can cause problems).
This is a less desirable process to simply eating plenty of high quality glucose in the first place. This means ripe fruit, honey, sprouts and raw vegetables. Generally, I am in the habit of recommending a piece of fruit 20 minutes before each meal. If you are taking cayenne, you can take the cayenne fifteen minutes before this or 5 minutes later, both seem to work.
I also recommend just fruit for breakfast. This feeds the body cells and will not hang out in the blood for Candida to eat or blood sugar to increase. This will build up glycogen stores (which are depleted in most people) which will release glucose anytime it is needed so that the whole cortisol process does not have to take place.
Sugars that are immediately usable by the body are no threat. This includes whole sugars with enzymes in tact and trace minerals and water to aid in their use. This is what you get from ripe fruit, honey, sprouts and raw non-starchy vegetables.
This plan is simply an understanding of what the body really needs to be healthy. It needs high quality glucose and oxygen in its cells, not its blood.
It follows, once more, that the fruit, or any food, should be chewed completely and all fruit should be eaten on an empty stomach. This ensures that the fruit digests, rather than ferments. Fruit in the stomach with any other food will ferment and certainly feed the Candida.
Candida is a pretty trippy subject right now. There are elements of the Candida struggle that are out of our control, such as modern houses, EM radiation, microwave radiation on wireless devices and Microwave ovens -- all of which encourage mutation in Candida and malfunction in the human immune system.
We also deal with toxins in our air and water. We can put filters on our home water (I put one on mine for less than 100 dollars and installed it myself in one morning) and air systems, but just breathing outside air may infuse us with synthetic fibers that promote fugal growth and hide this growth from normal, natural defenses.
My experience suggests, however, that wise use of natural methods that are in our control is still enough. I hope it will continue to be. We can cut down the microwave and EM radiation we are exposed to. We also can think healthier thoughts and resist the down trend in thinking that accompanies a toxic world full of people who are struggling to express their love for one another (though, I generally find that most people really do have that love).
I believe you can take control of your health in any situation in life. If you really cannot, then focus on what you can control and fall in love with that for now. Be grateful for what you can do and for the challenges that keep you interested in doing better. Focus on gratitude and your ability to do better will be gradually increased.
Thanks for reading, Kal Sellers, MH
About the author
Kal Sellers, MH currently operates KalsSchool.com and teaches a 2-year curriculum for Natural Medicine, via live teleclasses.
Kal is a Master Herbalist and holds several other certificates and licenses for hands-on healing modalities. He maintains a current practice in the Atlanta area.
Kal and Traci have six children, the last four of which were delivered at home. They live now in Powder Springs, GA where they teach live classes on food and medicine. Kal is also a full time Chiropractic student.
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