If you have been following me on social media, it won’t come as a surprise that I have decided to change my diet this year. Why? Myself, and along with countless others are suffering from a silent illness, and if you were like me, you may be completely unaware you are dealing with these life changing symptoms on a daily basis. What symptoms am I talking about?

-Feeling tired, worn down or extremely fatigued.
-Skin and nail fungal infections like athletes foot or toenail fungus.
-Bloating, constipation or diarrhea
-Difficulty concentrating, poor memory, brain fog. (I always thought I had ADD without the diagnoses)
-Mood swings, anxiety, depression.
-Skin issues, itchy skin, eczema.
-Vaginal infections, urinary tract infections, rectal itching, or vaginal itching.

Most of these symptoms are often diagnosed as something else. I had no idea why I was SO tired… ALL. THE. TIME. It was so frustrating. Even though I was eating relatively healthy, I always felt bloated, unfocused, had itchy skin and (guys stop reading) reoccurring MONTHLY yeast infections! My doctor would just keep prescribing me yeast infection pills. And it just kept coming back. Not only was it so gross, but that shit puts a damper on your sex life, obviously. It came to the point last year that I knew there had to be something that was causing these symptoms…and I wasn’t about to take pills for the rest of my life. I went to a naturopath and discovered I had…CANDIDA.

Yeah, I didn’t know what it was either, but I do now! Thank you Jesus. Maybe you are wondering, “What the F is Candida?” Don’t get grossed out, but Candida is a fungus (a form of yeast), and a very small amount lives in our mouth and intestines to help us with nutrient absorption and digestion. Sounds harmless, but when its overproduced and grows, it can break down the wall of your intestine and penetrate the bloodstream-yikes- releasing toxic by product into your body causing infections, and all those symptoms I mentioned above (digestive issues to depression).

It sounds so scary, and it could be, if left untreated for years. I watched a documentary last year, where many doctors practicing other ways to treat cancer, agreed that Candida is the start of most, if not all, cancers. Double Yikes. I was bummed to find out I had it, but also super relieved to know what I was dealing with, and that it could be reversed! The good news is that the healthy bacteria in your gut usually keep your candida levels in check; however it can grow and get out of control if…

-You eat a diet high in refined carbohydrates and sugar
-consume lots of alcohol (love my tequila and sangria)
-high stress lifestyle
-taking a round of antibiotics that killed too many of the friendly bacteria
-taking oral contraceptives

So now that you are aware of Candida, and are suffering with some of those symptoms- go get tested. It might save your life! I am now on my way to reversing this issue. How? By doing 3 things: stopping the yeast from growing, building up friendly bacteria, and healing my gut so candida can no longer flow into my bloodstream.

First thing you need to do is to change your diet. I didn’t want to admit it, but I was extremely addicted to sugar. Sugar is what feeds candida- and is in almost everything… so make sure you read ingredients carefully. It has many different names as well, including anhydrous dextrose, cane crystals or cane sugar, corn syrup, fructose, lactose maltose. Fructose is sugar from fruit and vegetables; lactose is milk sugar and maltose is sugar from grain. This doesn’t mean just stop eating candy- this is sugar in all its form, unfortunately for a while. Wheat and bread products also break down in your body to sugar, so this part kinda sucks. This includes cakes, flours, alcohol, bread, FRUIT, potatoes, beans, pasta, most dairy….I know, I know… the good things in life. (UGH Food is life) However, this will help prevent the candida from growing and will eventually cause it to die. HORRAY! DIE you bastard! My naturopath also recommended the supplement Caprylic cid. Caprylic acid comes from coconut oil and it breaks down the candidas cell wall.

Next, you want to replenish your intestines with all the happy, friendly bacteria again that keeps this baby under control. Get at least 25 to 100 BILLION units of PROBIOTICS everyday. In the process of healing your gut, adding these Candida fighting foods below will help you and improve your overall health!

-Coconut Oil
-Garlic
-Apple Cider Vinegar
-Broccoli and Cabbage
-Ginger
-Olive Oil (don’t heat it)
-Cloves
-Cinnamon
-Salmon
-Lemon Juice

So yes, at the moment I am right in the middle of this diet. This means no sugar, wheat, alcohol or coffee (mm Starbucks). It was extremely tough at first to cut sugar out, but I am slowly getting the hang of it now. I know this blog was a long one- and if you are still here, thanks for reading! I will be posting updates of my journey on healing my gut, as well as recipes I find along the way. Have you suffered from Candida before? Did you get rid of it? Do you have any other recommendations you would like to share? Spread the love. Lets get more vocal about this condition and help save people from their silent suffering.

Until next week,

Namaste