Candida is a genus of yeast and the most common cause of fungal infections worldwide. While it is almost universal in small numbers on healthy human skin, a candida infection can be caused by excessive sugar, food allergies or medications such as antibiotics, HRT or the oral contraceptive pill.
Symptoms of candida can include fatigue, confusion, depression and mood swings. It can also manifest in physical symptoms such as muscle aches, oral and virginal thrush, bowel disturbances and diarrhoea or constipation. If we diagnose you with candida we will offer you the following diet advice and recommendations:
Diet advice: No sugar
- Check canned food, food packets, sauces and spreads for added sugar in their contents. Sugar can be called glucose, sucrose, cane sugar, or organic sugar. Sugar is not natural occurring sugars in foods.
- Buy sugar free chocolates with natural sweeteners xylitol or fructose – these are available in health food shops or the health food section of the supermarket.
- Avoid honey or malt. It digests in the lower gut and ferments like sugar. This includes rice malt.
- Try sweetening with apple concentrate.
- Try sugar free strawberry jam. (Make sure it has no grape juice to sweeten it).
- Buy sugar free muesli, and cereals.
- Avoid dried fruit – this often has sugar added.
Diet advice: No yeast
- Don’t eat bread with yeast – only yeast-free and sugar-free bread such as flat pitta breads, mountain bread and yeast-free sour dough. Yeast does not include naturally occurring yeast in sour dough.
- Bread alternatives include corn thins, rice cake and rice crackers with no added sugar or yeast.
- Avoid fruit other than bananas, apples, pears – especially the likes of pineapple, watermelon, mango and kiwi. Strawberries and citrus fruits are allowed in small doses.
- Avoid fermented cheeses, meats and mushrooms.
- Avoid Marmite and peanut butter spreads. Try other nut spreads like macadamia and cashew.
- Avoid stock cubes, soy sauce and Tamari. Braggs Liquid Aminos is a non-fermented soy sauce.
- Avoid alcohol other than sake, vodka and gin – especially beer and wine. Try mixing drinks with fresh lime juice or use soda water instead of tonic water. Sugar-free tonic water is fine.