Anti-Candida Diets - Do They Really Work?

Anti-Candida Diets - Do They Really Work?

Do anti-Candida diets really work? You already know that typical anti-yeast treatments often fail to prevent recurrent yeast infections, but is a rigid anti-Candida diet really going to solve the problem? How difficult will it be to implement and maintain a highly restrictive diet for the rest of your life? Is there a better way?

Why Anti-Candida Diets Work

Yes, yeast infections are usually linked to Candida albicans (or C. albicans), but the simple presence of the bacteria in the body is not a problem. In fact, the bacteria is present in almost all humans. Symptoms only occur when the populations of C. albicans become abnormally large. This "blooming" of the bacteria is what anti-Candida diets try to prevent.

Like any living thing, C. albicans requires a specific environment in which to flourish. By reducing the intake of foods which encourage Candida growth, and by increasing the intake of foods which encourage the growth of competing but beneficial bacteria such as L. acidophilus, an anti-Candid diet attempts to alter the body's internal environment making it inhospitable to the C. albicans bacteria.

Why Anti-Candida Diets Fail

Since the basic concept behind the diet is correct, anti-Candida diets do work, but they can be very difficult to implement, and very difficult to maintain. If you don't fully implement the diet (i.e., avoid all of the Candida-friendly foods and eat enough of the Candida-suppressing foods), then the diet may not provide the relief you're seeking. As a result, you end up struggling to maintain a restrictive diet that is not providing all the benefits it should.

A second problem arises in that most anti-Candida diets don't go far enough in their attempt to alter the body's environment. As a result, a temporary lapse in the diet can allow a new bloom to occur and with it a recurrence of the symptoms. This is similar to the yo-yo effect of many poorly balanced weight loss diets. Yes, some of these "fad" diets can help you lose weight, but they fail to help you maintain a weight loss over an extended period of time because they are too rigorous. You need a more balanced, more easily maintained approach.

There a Better Solution

I believe there is a better solution. If you're currently suffering the symptoms of a yeast infection then first you need an immediate reduction in C. albicans populations, but you need to accomplish the reduction in a way that doesn't aggravate the imbalance in your body that allowed the bloom to occur.

You then need a way to reestablish your body's internal balance that isn't difficult to implement, isn't difficult to maintain, and doesn't leave you vulnerable to a "rebound" affect every time you have a momentary lapse of discipline.