Candida & Biofilms - Theory & Protocol

[Gemma]

I am restrictive with cayenne and with other spices, I wonder, if cayenne irritates the gut.

Cayenne is a very strong biofilm disruptor, useful if you have fungal overgrowth. Spices are our friends!

Good luck!

 

[dmholmes]

Cayenne is a very strong biofilm disruptor, useful if you have fungal overgrowth. Spices are our friends!

Good luck!

I eliminated dietary capsaicin a while back to see if it helped with chronic neck/shoulder pain while sleeping. I assumed it was intolerance (nightshade) but perhaps it was causing an increase in toxin production or inflammation?

 

[tjb1187]

Pasteurized milk has some sugar (lactose) in it. I suppose that's what people are worried about. While everyone is different, some people (including myself) have found that complex carbs or "safe starches" that quickly break down into glucose (potatoes, yams, rice) are readily absorbed by the body before candida can feed off of them. So, it may be the other sugars that need some minor conversion in the body (fructose, lactose, sucrose, etc) that candida has an easier time snatching up. I can't say for sure, but all I can say is that many people seem to do well with healthy portions of "safe starches" and perhaps it's the lactose that people are worried about.

However, raw milk has lactase in it, which aside from its healing properties, should allow the lactose to be more easily assimilated in the body. You'll find a number of gurus who claim that raw milk is fine for candida. And from my personal experience, I had no problems whatsoever with drinking significant quantities of raw milk or yogurt. In fact, I'd say the more raw milk I drank, the better I felt.

@Ripley

I've had candida issues for years, and I've tried a slightly neutral (w/r/t Ketogenic vs PHD) approach for the last few months, where I basically eat Keto + 3-4 cooked cups of white rice/day. Energy up, brain fog down, but many of the core issues remain. I try periodically to add starchy tubers and some fruit, but they each continue to ignite my symptoms (rosecea/eczema near nose, itchy rectum, tingling toes and penis, blood sugar issues if eaten away from protein) in the same way. If I'm interpreting your posts correctly, you'd still advise for someone in my situation to . . . eat them anyway, in concert with the biofilm disruptor and then eventually the RS and SBO? Not questioning the validity of your research/anecdotal experience here, just genuinely curious. I'd do pretty much anything to get better at this point.

Also, I've noticed you haven't logged in in over a month. If this happens to catch your eye in an email or something, PLEASE come back. Your posts are among the most informative and lucid descriptions of a health-related issue I've ever come across on the Internet (or really, anywhere).

Few other questions (posed to anyone, as are the ones above):

1. Little confused on the ~30% energy/day from carbs. You keep saying it's nearly a pound of carbs. Is that *after* or *before* cooking them? Since I'm lazy as hell and would much rather take approximate direction from an anonymous internet poster than go out and buy a scale myself, about how much of each item (cooked white rice, sweet potato, white potato, respectively) would that be per day (e.g. 3 cups rice, 1.5 sweet potatoes, 2.5 white potatoes) for someone who normally consumes about 3000 calories?
2. Is it normal for someone with candida to be completely intolerant of vinegar and all citrus fruits? I'm guessing this may signify a corresponding histamine issue. Can that be cleared up domino-style by this protocol as well?
3. My brain fog accelerates under two conditions: when I take LA probiotics, and when I go on the computer for long stretches of time, especially if I'm in the process of carbohydrate digestion (the more sugar the carb contains, the worse it seems to be.) If I don't go on the computer, I almost never experience the brain fog. Are either of those things odd/unusual? I know you've spoken a lot about RS and its effect on the *bifido* populations in your gut, but it'd seem like LAB would be beneficial for someone trying to lower the pH of their small intestine. No?
4. Does white rice actually *do* anything for you, or is just there to increase your total caloric intake if you need it to? Would it even prevent ketones from forming?
5. Do any long-term consequences result from the lack of fruit in a diet? I haven't eaten fruit in months, and I'm a little worried it might be pernicious after a while.

A BIG thank you to you and everyone else on this forum for all the assistance you've provided over these last months.

 

[Gondwanaland]

rosecea/eczema near nose

This disappeared for me after a course of metronidazole (Flagyl) 1.5 years ago.

 

[dmholmes]

1. Little confused on the ~30% energy/day from carbs. You keep saying it's nearly a pound of carbs. Is that *after* or *before* cooking them? Since I'm lazy as hell and would much rather take approximate direction from an anonymous internet poster than go out and buy a scale myself, about how much of each item (cooked white rice, sweet potato, white potato, respectively) would that be per day (e.g. 3 cups rice, 1.5 sweet potatoes, 2.5 white potatoes) for someone who normally consumes about 3000 calories?

Those recommendations come from the Perfect Health Diet. I don't do it by weight, but rather go by the percentages. 30% of 3000 calories would be 900 calories or 225 grams of carbohydrate a day. 1 cup of cooked rice ~50 grams carbohydrate, depending on type of rice. 1 medium sweet potato ~25 grams carbohydrate. 1 medium white potato ~30 grams carbohydrate. You can check other sizes and varieties at nutritiondata.self.com.

4. Does white rice actually *do* anything for you, or is just there to increase your total caloric intake if you need it to? Would it even prevent ketones from forming?

In PHD it is a "safe starch" and a source of glucose without fructose to prevent glucose deficiency.

 

[tjb1187]

Those recommendations come from the Perfect Health Diet. I don't do it by weight, but rather go by the percentages. 30% of 3000 calories would be 900 calories or 225 grams of carbohydrate a day. 1 cup of cooked rice ~50 grams carbohydrate, depending on type of rice. 1 medium sweet potato ~25 grams carbohydrate. 1 medium white potato ~30 grams carbohydrate. You can check other sizes and varieties at nutritiondata.self.com.

In PHD it is a "safe starch" and a source of glucose without fructose to prevent glucose deficiency.

Great, thanks. Doesn't ferment, though, right?

BTW, is coconut oil only ineffective against candida if you've been in ketosis for a while?

 

[jepps]

What´s with fighting candida with friendly yeast as described here:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24626467
Oral mycobiome analysis of HIV-infected patients: identification of Pichia as an antagonist of opportunistic fungi.

Abstract
Increase in Candida colonization was associated with a concomitant decrease in the abundance of Pichia, suggesting antagonism. We found that Pichia spent medium (PSM) inhibited growth of Candida, Aspergillus and Fusarium. Moreover, Pichia cells and PSM inhibited Candida biofilms (P = .002 and .02, respectively, compared to untreated controls). The mechanism by which Pichia inhibited Candida involved nutrient limitation, and modulation of growth and virulence factors. Finally, in an experimental murine model of oral candidiasis, we demonstrated that mice treated with PSM exhibited significantly lower infection score (P = .011) and fungal burden (P = .04) compared to untreated mice.

Pichia is a member of the friendly yiest family Saccharomycetaceae. Also a member of this friendly yeast family are Saccharomyces cerevisiae (in kefir) and Saccharomyces boulardii. Also Chris Kresser suggests Saccharomyces boulardii for treating candida:
http://chriskresser.com/top-4-mistakes-people-make-when-treating-candida-overgrowth

Saccharomyces boulardii, which is a beneficial strain of yeast, has been shown to inhibit the growth of Candida and also reduce inflammatory cytokine production that is associated with cells that are infected with Candida;

Regards, jepps

 

[alexandrefrench]

Hello,

I am French and I try to treat my fungal feet.( foot athlète) For several weeks my tongue is very white also ..It's been four months that candida persist with a gluten-free diet, no lactose, no cheese, no meat. I eat a lot of greenery and coconut. I consume garlic in large quantities with leeks as chicory and Jerusalem artichokes. I'll try to post your advice to take a potato believed to raise organic inulin rates. I tried the anti candida diets but it did not work. It's hard to find the right diet. Since two weeks I try the Gaps plan. I would like to find answers to this candida problem and live better.

 

[jepps]

Hello Alexandre,

This is a suggestion for a candida protocol:

http://chriskresser.com/top-4-mistakes-people-make-when-treating-candida-overgrowth

 

[jepps]

This is a an old, but very interesting article from Donna Gates (Body Ecology Diet) about Candida:
- as the root for neurological disease, if we were infected with candida from out mother
- what vaccines do, when somebody with candida is vaccinated ( the candida-infected brain causes cause viral infection in the brain)
- that the most important thing for healing neurological disease, is to treat candida, but not with fungicides (thanks @Asklipia )
- and that treating candida lasts 6 months until 2 years (my last stool test ever shows highest excretion of candida - since 9 months).

http://bodyecology.com/articles/unknown_health_epidemic.php#.VN2-nfmG9Cj
http://bodyecology.com/articles/myths_truths_mercury_autism_connection.php#.VN3Ai_mG9Ch


Dr. Enderlein, a German researcher, who treats candida with homoepathic remedies, builds up his therapy at the same way: first treat the candida (this lasts 1 - 2 years), and during candida treatment the viral infections come up, and are treatable. The reason for viral infections is candida, who is so deep in the tissues, that fungi is not detected, and when candida suppresses the immunity, we are overloaded with viral and bacterial infections.

 

[alexandrefrench]

Thank you I am currently a PHD to try to combat my candidiasis. I'd like to ingest foods priority if one is suffering from candidiasis. I PHD and I add a lot of coconut (he said it best olive oil what to think) as well as lacto-fermented vegetables (cabbage). You eat bananas? I eat 3 potatoes cooled and 250 g of white rice cooled day.
What you advise me to add?

 

[jepps]

http://mthfr.net/methylation-inhibited-by-candidas-toxin/2012/09/08/

Methionine synthase has a few potent inhibiting compounds and one is produced from Candida
Candida albicans produces a toxic byproduct called acetylaldehyde.[1]
Research cites:
“Acetaldehyde-induced inhibition of liver methionine synthase activity is thus proposed as the most likely explanation of the reported in vivo effect of ethanol upon methionine synthase.” [2]

As long as we do not treat candida, we do not methylate very well, and have problems with detoxifying. Adressing candida and methylation must go hand in hand.

 

[alexandrefrench]

I read this article http://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/dont-waste-your-time-why-the-candida-diet-doesnt-work/
"
Healing is prevented on the Candida Diet for the following key reasons:

Reason #1: The Candida Diet allows foods like potato, yams and other starchy vegetables.

Reason #2: More important than the allowance of starch in the Candida Diet, however, is the ultimate fatal flaw: the inclusion of grain based foods."


what do you think ? Resistant starch ?

 

[ebethc]

I've since learned I have mold toxicity and I suspect the herbal antimicrobials just are not strong enough for the mold.
My doctor is planning to treat me with amph B/EDTA sinus rinse (breaks down biofilm) and other oral prescription antifungals.

Is this sinus rinse available OTC? I googled it but didn't find much info. thanks.

 

[ebethc]

@Gestalt - what is the dosage for Serraflazyme?

thanks

 

[globalpilot]

Is this sinus rinse available OTC? I googled it but didn't find much info. thanks.

No it isn't OTC.

 

[Violeta]

Preamble
About 4 weeks ago I tried 1 capsule of Candex (cellulase enzyme forumla), within 24 hours the brain fog I experienced for 15+ years magically went away. Candida produce carbon dioxide and this will most definitely give a person brain fog. My muscles also felt better than ever. My endurance and strength in the gym improved dramatically. (I pump iron weekly) My appetite changed in that I didn't experience intense hunger and carb cravings if I went without food longer than usual, and the night-time over-heating issues I had went away. There is no doubt that in my mind now that candida is likely the sole/primary cause of my CFS. I slowly ramped up the dose, and felt amazing/normal for 2 weeks. No herx and I wasn't even on the Candida diet. Then I forgot to take the enzymes for a few days.

Started taking it again, and then BAM, within 30mins get hit with massive nausea and vomiting lasting for 4-8 hours. I can't even take 1 pill now without massive symptoms, where before I was taking up to 4 a day with zero issues. This makes sense given what I have discovered in my research on biofilms that candida form. Toxins start pouring out when you use the enzymes

Do you have any theory about why the first time you took the Candex it didn't cause the massive nausea and vomiting? If your candida had been ongoing for sometime without any treatment, and then you stopped the Candex for only a few days, the second time you started it you should have not been in a worse situation than the first time.

Whoops, just found your answer is already here:

"My current speculation is that, prior I had been taking liver support supplements, and those helped prevent reactions. I ran out, and didn't stock up again, and this may be why I got such a bad reaction when i attempted a 2nd start. Now I am going overboard, taking as much liver/detox support supplements as I possibly can. So I'll see in a few days if that helps."

So liver detox helps with candida! Thanks for experimenting.

 

[shannah]

Do you have any theory about why the first time you took the Candex it didn't cause the massive nausea and vomiting? If your candida had been ongoing for sometime without any treatment, and then you stopped the Candex for only a few days, the second time you started it you should have not been in a worse situation than the first time.

Whoops, just found your answer is already here:

"My current speculation is that, prior I had been taking liver support supplements, and those helped prevent reactions. I ran out, and didn't stock up again, and this may be why I got such a bad reaction when i attempted a 2nd start. Now I am going overboard, taking as much liver/detox support supplements as I possibly can. So I'll see in a few days if that helps."

So liver detox helps with candida! Thanks for experimenting.

@Gestalt Wondering what specifically you're using for liver support?

 

[ahmo]

@shannah, @Violeta My liver support was coffee enemas during my Candida/SIBO purge. Unlike when I was focused on metals, last year, my fungal/bacterial experience was that I needed the enemas daily to avoid feeling bad. In my earlier detox efforts, I used CEs 4 days on, 2 days off. I'm finally off the CE routine.

 

[drob31]

Is it possible that Candida isn't actually the root problem, but rather, is an opportunistic organism that thrives in a body where an immune system is weakened / malfunctioning, and or, the thyroid/adrenals cause a lower body temperature that allows Candida to thrive?