The ignored epidemic

Candida infection is a controversial condition and perhaps the most ignored epidemic worldwide. In this article we’ll take a look at its symptoms, causes and treatment.
Candida infection is caused by a naturally occurring organism in all human beings – a single-celled organism called Candida albicans that can cause a tremendous amount of health problems:

• fatigue (more noticeable after eating)
• frequent headaches/migraines
• digestive problems – bloating, diarrhea, constipation
• vaginal yeast infections
• rashes

What you need to understand about this particular organism is that each one of us carries it in our gastrointestinal tract. And – as long as everything is equal and balanced – it doesn’t seem to cause any harm one way or the other.
In fact, inside your gut or intestinal linings, you have another group of organisms known as the healthy bacteria. And those healthy bacteria include acidophilus, bifidus – whole variety of various strains. These good guys, the good bacteria keep the Candida population in line. They kind of balance each other out.
Now here comes the problem. Whenever we do something or get into the situation where we’re damaging or reducing greatly the amount of the healthy bacteria in our gastrointestinal tract, that allows the Candida organism to explosively multiply.

Leading Causes of Candida Infection

Now under what circumstances might that occur? First of all – when you use broad spectrum antibiotics. The antibiotic destroys all bacteria – not just the bad guys but it kills the good ones in your intestinal tract as well. And once they’ve died off, that allows that Candida to grow unchecked. Another causes of Candida infection include:

• weakened immune system (people suffering from cancer or AIDS are especially susceptible to Candida overgrowth)
• eating unhealthy foods (for example, foods high in sugar create a breeding ground for Candida albicans to proliferate)
• taking birth control pills that cause hormonal imbalance which is perfect environment for Candida to thrive
• diabetes or pregnancy

The problem with Candida infection is that many conventional doctors still deny its existence. Holistic doctors on the other hand are claiming that it has reached epidemic proportions as there’s hardly any woman alive who hasn’t at one time or another in her life experienced a localized vaginal yeast infection. It’s up to you who you trust, but if you suffer from any of the aforementioned symptoms with no real explanation, it may be worth your time to talk with your doctor to see whether Candida is involved.

Editor’s note: subclinical “systemic candidiasis” is a controversial diagnosis espoused by proponents of alternative medicine.  Subclinical “systemic candiasis” or candida hypersensitivity syndrome is a view that was widely promoted in a book by Dr. William Crook.  It’s not widely viewed as a viable diagnosis by conventional medicine.