I've been trying to decide if I might have a candida problem, the thing is that the list of symptoms does not really help a lot, I find that most of them are the type of thing listed as symptoms for anything and everything. As far as I know I have never had a vaginal yeast infection and would not know the symptoms for it, I assume it would be some kind of discharge but am not sure.

I read about the spit test. Does anyone know who came up with this and is it accurate. Do medical people say this is a sure fire way of testing for candida.

Would eating yogurt and avoiding the foods listed as aggravating Candida be enough to get rid of mild Candida, as I am not into swallowing a lot of supplements.

Hi, Koko! I would bet that most doctors wouldn't believe in the spit test, since most mainstream doctors don't believe candida exists.

I, for one, have candida, self diagnosed. This is how I determined I had it (besides symptoms, which I have alot of)

1. I have been on antibiotics more times than I can count.

2. I have food allergies, and am allergic to mold.

3. When I take an anti-fungal, I get a horrible die-off reaction.

I have not had alot of problems with vaginal yeast infections, maybe only six in my lifetime. I do, however have alot of stomach/digestive problems.

I think that if you have a mild case, the candida diet would help a great deal. The yogurt probably won't be much help. You would have to eat gallons of it everyday to get the benefits of a good probiotic. You really need to sit down, and review your health history. If you have been on alot of antibiotics, or birth control pills, or take alot of NSAIDS (ibuprophen, etc.) it is highly possible you have Candida.

With a true case of Candida, multiple supplements are necessary. I take too many to list here. Like I said, think about your health history, and let us know if you really think you have candida, there are alot of knowledgable folks on this forum who can really help. I have read volumes on this subject and am still finding new information.

Good luck!

-Jess

Thanks Jess,

I don't have too many symptoms and recently have not had many antibiotics, average about 1 a year for several years but none in over a year now. However when I was younger went through a period of several anti-biotics a year. In the last few years though I have been taking a lot of pain pills ranging from ibuprofen to pills containing codeine. (what is NSAIDS acronym for??). I think I might have candida because the first time I tried Atkins I thought that I had a sensitivity to cheese. I did not lose if eating cheese, and as he says "the foods we love" I LOVE cheese, and also like he says, years of avoiding cheese because of the high fat content are true for me. As I have been re-doing Induction, the only cheese I have had lately is cream, except - oh no - for some store bought blue cheese dressing, so hopefully I am well on the way to starving those little demons out (if I have them)

Why would the pain pills contribute to this I wonder?

NSAID stands for non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug. Drugs that fall under this category include Motrin, Advil, Aleve, etc. There are prescription anti-inflammatory drugs as well, and some of them do contain codeine, but codeine pills could also have acetominaphin (tylenol). Please excuse me if I spelled any of this wrong. Tylenol is not considered an anti-inflammatory.

I do not think that minor usage of any NSAID would cause Candida, like for an occasional headache. It's from regular, high doses that would cause a problem. What happens is that the NSAID causes problems in the intestines, which then makes a more habitable place for the Candida to thrive. This can also cause leaky-gut syndrome, which will exacerbate Candida, and also cause food allergies, and other problems. There is some information that says leaky gut causes Candida, but then some say the reverse is true. Kind of like the chicken and the egg.

So it depends what type of pain pill you have taken, and how much. It sounds like if you do have Candida, it could be a mild case. There is a thread in the Candida Forum that starts out
"yeast fighters". If you read down the thread, Kent posted a GREAT link, that will give you tons of info about candida. Taking a probiotic wouldn't hurt you, and would be a benefit whether you have Candida or not.

There are so many schools of thought about Candida. There are some theories that just one dose of antibiotics is enough to set it in motion, and there are others who believe it is from long term regular usage of antibiotics.

Hope this was helpful!

-Jess

Thanks Jessea

It was indeed helpful, and I am one of the last people you should worry about your spelling with , although all of it looked ok to me.

I'll be looking for some pro-biotics next time I'm out.

Thanks again