Candida and depression

Depression and Yeast
By Carolyn Dean, MD, ND
Depression casts a shadow over the lives of 19 million Americans, two-thirds of them women. The precise cause, in many cases, remains a mystery. Genetics, brain chemistry gone bonkers, even environmental depredation have all been mentioned, and documented, as causes of depression.
We suggest that systemic yeast overgrowth is another often-overlooked cause of depression.
In their latest book, The Yeast Connection and Women's Health, Dr. William Crook and Dr. Carolyn Dean say their colleagues found a very strong link between Candida albicans yeast overgrowth and depression in patients who had a history of any of the following:

• Use of antibiotics, especially long courses of antibiotics
• Use of birth control pills
• Persistent digestive distress
• Recurring vaginal yeast infections

During his lifetime, Dr. Crook made the fascinating discovery that 85 percent of women suffering from depression who had even one of the above elements in their history found relief from depression and a host of other symptoms by following his Anti-Candida Treatment Plan. Why? Let's look at the cycle of yeast overgrowth in the body and how it affects various body systems, including brain chemistry.
It starts simply enough--you get sick and you take antibiotics or cortisone-containing drugs to feel better. You get sick again and take medications to treat your symptoms. This happens many times over a period of years. You may also be taking birth control pills. Over time, the natural, healthy balance of yeast and microorganisms in your intestinal tract alters its balance in response to the medications.
Antibiotics (literally meaning anti-life) indiscriminately kill bacteria throughout your system. This is good if you have bacterial pneumonia or an infected wound, because the "bad" bacteria could eventually threaten your life. However, the antibiotics also kill the "good" bacteria, especially those that live in your digestive tract and help digest your food. This upsets the natural balance of bacteria and yeast that usually live in harmony in your digestive tract, since yeast is not affected by antibiotics.
The more often you take antibiotics or cortisone-containing drugs, the more disturbed your natural balance of intestinal flora. The medical term for this is dysbiosis.
As the flora in your intestine becomes increasingly out of balance, two things happen: the lining of your intestines weakens and you develop a craving for sugars and carbohydrates to try to feed the unnaturally large amount of yeast in your intestine.
The more sugar and carbs you eat, the more the yeast grows out of balance and the larger your appetite becomes for even more sugars and carbs. In response, the lining of your intestine weakens due to the unnatural balance of microorganisms and the increasingly weakened immune system.
Toxins and food allergens normally cannot penetrate your intestinal lining. However, under yeast overload conditions yeast change from a budding form to a mycelia form that penetrates the intestinal lining allowing toxins and food allergens to leak into the bloodstream. The more they enter the bloodstream, the weaker your immune system becomes and the more "sick all over" you feel. See, The Yeast Connection and Women's Health for more detailed descriptions of this cycle known as "leaky gut syndrome" and its effect on chronic health conditions.
Candida toxins, basically products of their metabolism or toxins released when they die, number in the dozens. In fact, by 1977, seventy-nine different toxins had been identified. Two in particular, are alcohol and acetaldehyde. In some cases of severe intestinal Candida, people have measurable levels of alcohol and acetaldehyde in their blood. And they feel intoxicated just as if they were drinking alcohol. We know about acetaldehyde because it has been shown to be breakdown product of alcohol that is responsible for hangover symptoms.
When acetaldehyde reacts with the neurotransmitter, dopamine, it can cause mental and emotional disturbances such as anxiety, depression, poor concentration, and feeling spaced-out. If you look up the toxicology of acetaldehyde you find that it adversely affects many tissues and organs in the body. Is it any surprise, then, that depression and fatigue are two of the most common complaints of people suffering from dysbiosis? Is it any wonder that yeast overgrowth plays a role in the symptoms of such a wide variety of chronic health conditions? See www.yeastconnection.com for more information about overcoming these conditions and finding relief and health.
Without proper treatment for Candida, a whole cascade of problems creates a downward spiral that triggers a cascade of symptoms and the following scenario.
You feel more sick, so …

• The dysbiosis becomes more severe
• Candida toxins directly affect your brain making you feel depressed
• Candida overgrowth causes sugar and carb cravings and your diet spins more out of control
• More nutritional deficiencies develop
• More endocrine disturbances occur
• Further weakening your immune system
• Promoting a release of brain chemicals, disturbing the normal balance of mood-regulating chemicals in your brain and
• Causing even more depression and/or anxiety.

Unfortunately, there has not been any significant research on yeast-related causes of depression since Dr. Crook introduced the topic in an article in the Journal of the American Medical Association 20 years ago in 1984.
And sadly, there is no magic bullet drug treatment.