It’s safe to say by now that we all know sugar is bad for our health.
We know that we shouldn’t consume it often, but that’s much easier said than done. Sugar is a sneaky, addictive substance and the break up isn’t always as easy as just making the decision to stop. That’s why we have to understand what it does to our biochemistry well enough to put an effective and long-lasting sugar-kicking strategy in place.
In some cases, it’s not our fault that we are collectively addicted to this stuff. Our food supply has changed so dramatically in the last 60 years, that we kind of got lulled into it.
For example, the average soda size in 1955 was only 7 ounces. Over the last five decades, it slowly crept up and now we have the Big Gulp weighing it at 128 ounces (that would be like 17 sodas in 1955)!
What Qualifies Something as an Addictive Substance?
- Having just a little bit creates a desire for more
- Suddenly quitting causes withdrawal symptoms such as headaches, mood swings, cravings, and fatigue
This addiction has led to a downward cycle of health issues including mineral deficiencies, thyroid imbalances, adrenal exhaustion, leaky gut syndrome, autoimmune conditions, and digestive and mood imbalances.
It’s a slippery slope, but sometimes the sugar cravings are bigger than us.
I have seen this so often in my practice and experienced it acutely myself. When someone comes to me with sugar cravings that “take over” (like a craving that has you running out for something sweet at 11pm in your pajamas) then I test him or her for Candida as a root cause not only of their sugar addiction, but also of all the issues listed above.
What is Candida?
Candida albicans is an opportunistic organism and pathogenic yeast. We all have it in our bodies, and most of the time, it’s harmless. But when it overgrows, it causes major problems and symptoms such as:
- Persistent constipation, bloating, or gas
- Mental fog you simply can’t shake
- Debilitating chronic fatigue/exhaustion
- Intense sugar cravings
- Chronic sinus infections
- Excess mucous
- Recurring vaginal yeast infections
- Persistent food or environmental allergies
- Depression and anxiety
- White coating on the tongue
- Hypothyroidism (Candida inhibits thyroid conversion)
In a perfect world, our good bacteria would keep Candida in check and it wouldn’t be a problem, only we are doing so many things daily to kill our good gut bacteria that so many people unknowingly struggle with it.
What Contributes to Candida Overgrowth?
- Antibiotics- even just one full-spectrum round can cause it
- Antibiotics in our meat supply
- Overconsumption of sugar and processed, refined foods
- Overconsumption of alcohol and coffee
- Chronic, prolonged stress
- C-section deliveries
- Mercury exposure from dental fillings, vaccines, & tattoos.
- Birth control pills
Any one or a combination of these things kill our good gut flora, thin our gut lining, and compromise our immunity enough to allow this opportunistic organism (and often times many other pathogens) to take over and dominate our gut health.
And when anything dominates our gut health, it’s only a short matter of time before it dominates our hormonal health and immune health.
How to Test for Candida
There are stool, blood, and saliva lab tests for Candida overgrowth. While I prefer to run an 8-day stool test on someone when looking for pathogens in their GI tract, many people cannot afford to run labs and many don’t want to go through the hassle of testing.
When that is the case, there is a fast, easy, free DIY Candida spit test you can do at home.
For six days, keep a pen and paper in the bathroom. When you wake up, (before you eat or drink anything), fill a glass of water halfway and spit a dime-sized amount of saliva into the glass.
Watch it a few times (you don’t have to stare it down) over a 45-minute period and record your results each day for six days.
Your saliva will either stay floating on top, it will sink to the bottom, or it will grow legs. If it stays floating on top, there is likely no Candida overgrowth to worry about, but if it grows legs or especially if it sinks, then Candida is likely an issue for you.
I have run this test in tandem with stool, saliva, and blood tests many times and it has proven accurate. The reason you must test daily for six days is to mitigate variables. Keep to your normal diet while testing.
I have a short video showing you exactly how to do this DIY test here.
How to Get Rid of Candida
If you have Candida, don’t worry; you can get it back in balance. You can break up with sugar, for good. You can get your thyroid working well again so that you have mental clarity and can lose weight and keep it off with greater ease. You can have good digestion, a strong immune system, and good moods.
If you suspect you have Candida and want to know more about how to get rid of it, I have a 30-minute TV episode that shares my protocol on how I’ve helped countless others kick it in 6 weeks time.
We use a combination of a carefully crafted no sugar, no fermentation, diet (here are 52 Candida-diet friendly recipes) along with a 16-day antifungal rotation that includes grapefruit seed extract, oregano oil, olive leaf extract, and Pau D’arco. There are also GI cleansing agents involved like food grade diatomaceous earth and bentonite clay as well as the yeast eating strain of probiotic called saccharomyces boulardii.
This cleanse is then followed up with gut rebuilding agents to re-establish good gut flora, repair the mucosal lining, and rebuild hydrochloric acid. All of these components are necessary for lasting positive health changes and to be sure the Candida does not return. After digestive repair is achieved, then we give the thyroid and adrenals a boost.
Note: if you are pregnant or nursing, you cannot take the majority of the supplements I recommend in my Candida Protocol except the probiotics. You can instead do it through the Candida diet and by increasing antifungal food sources on a smaller scale.
After a decade in private practice and working with thousands of real people, I cannot have a stronger belief in the power of the human body. When you give the body what it needs and remove what burdens it, it will heal itself and it will thrive.
You don’t have to live your life craving sugar, being tired, or managing a litany of other uncomfortable symptoms. You can use food as your medicine to heal and to thrive.
Do you have symptoms of candida? Ever been tested? Want to try out the Candida Protocol? Share below!
Barleans Olive Leaf Complex Natural is a good product for aiding in the relief of Candida and its symptoms
My aim for this year was to get healthy. I have had numerous health complications from various surgeries, medications and untreated cronic fatigue for the past six years. Through trying the natourpaths and health remedies I ended up trying an allergist (decided I had nothing to lose and believed there was few things that I was allergic to).
How wrong I was. I am extremely allergic to Candida, moulds, coffee and slightly allergic to corn. This was a complete shock to me, but steadily I have been elimintating yeast based foods out of my diet (and I rarely drank coffee) and can tell now when my mother-in-law gives me food that is past it’s best 😉 … My question is, is there any good books that people would recomend for me to get meal plans and ideas off, and to have as a starting point? I have been recommended the “Sarah Wilson: I Quit Sugar” book by the allergist, but there is a lot of controvercy surrounding it. Also would not mine an unbaised oppinion on the book.
Thank you Wellness Mama for all of your blogs, I thoroughly enjoy swapping our household products as we run out of the commercial ones. Bec
I’ve written a lot of reviews on popular health books here: https://wellnessmama.com/category/reviews/
Hi Pattie, would you please be kind enough to tell us how you make the turmeric, ginger etc tea please.
Thanks ever so much
Hi Lorraine! The turmeric ginger lemonade is made from a ‘strip’ ginger root, a strip of turmeric root, the juice of one lemon and 4 cups of water. (www.thewholejourney.com has the recipe posted) You basically boil the water and then put the ginger and turmeric root in and let simmer for 10 minutes. I strain the water and then pour into a quart mason jar that already has the lemon juice in it!
I think the recipe calls for stevia, however since I can drink this up in a day sometimes I just drink it as is. I suppose you could add honey or another natural sweetener which I would do while it is still hot. I drink mine cold over ice just like lemonade.
I had a Candida problem for many years (and my doctor didn’t diagnose it; ever!). I started drinking water kefir and BAM! gone. Loved that such a natural solution yielded such great results!
I have struggled with Candida for many years but never knew what to do about it. If there was no processed sugar around, I would crave bread, milk and fruit. The cravings are incredibly strong and the symptoms so severe that I feel nearly schizophrenic sometimes. This diet is entirely opposite to the way that I eat now, I’m not even sure how to go about it. I want to try the Candida Protocol but right now I’m breastfeeding…This whole thing feels like Mount Everest. I don’t know if I can do this by myself.
Laura, I agree that it may be frustrating to see a price tag when you are just googling/looking for the information, but one needs to realize that these who post the info spend countless hours learning and researching it, create the videos and other materials -it is full time job and they need to support themselves like everyone else. I have been researching the Alternative health for 4 years now, and can tell what info / website is reliable, I guess it takes time for people to realize the value and benefits of these websites/ programs, it is not for everyone, some if us need to grow into it to appreciate it. I have done I lot of healthy changes to my life style and diet bases on reading and comparing countless sources and sticking to those that work and are reliable. I spent THOUSANDS of dollars on various alternative doctors and supplements they prescribed, some were completely ineffective and waste of money but that is the process- takes time, money and patience, initiative, self discipline and prayer. Getting back to the price for candida program, I think it is worth it ( see Christy’s video first) but you have to become comfortable with it first and trust it.
Wellness Mama- thank you for your work, I found a lot of great info and links that I have incorporated into my life. I am regular reader.
In response to Laura thinking that this was hype for a $247 program: I just finished the six week
cleanse last tuesday and it has been LIFE CHANGING! If it is hype, then thank you God that I chose believe it, purchase Christa’s program and actually do the cleanse! I knew intuitively that
I had systemic yeast overgrowth bc of chronic acne among other symptoms. After I grew a huge ‘jellyfish’ leggy thing every single day for six days my suspicion’s were confirmed and I thought to myself well I won’t die trying this and it just might work! I pretty much followed everything to the letter figuring I it isn’t FOREVER and like Christa said if you do it right you only have to do it once! The recipes are so good that they are just part of my lifestyle now, particularly the cleansing cilantro and the turmeric ginger lemonade (love those!) Though weight loss wasn’t a goal, I have lost a vanity 6 pounds and my skin is continuing to clear. At the 4 week mark I still had ‘legs’ in the water but like Christa says I ‘corrected and continued’ and I thought can this really work in the 6-10 week time frame? Well it did! Though I have been on a nutritional journey for about 6 years, it was maybe easier for me since I am already gluten free, pretty much grain free, etc. The real bonus to the cleanse was the suggestion in one of her talks to get
the book The Healing Codes by Alex Loyd and Ben Johnson. I am cracking up that it took me 40 books on nutrition and being lead to the WONDERFUL Whole Journey/Christa Orrechio to finally get to the root of my health issues in the first place as being Heart Issues! Christa mentioned several times that you can’t ignore the emotional stuff and boy is she RIGHT! Thank you Katie & Christa and Alex and Ben!
Hi pattie, I know this was well over a year ago but we’re you allowed any starchy foods on the diet? I’m little and they help my Bowles ? if so what kind
I’m disappointed that this article is mainly hype for a $247 program. I thought Wellness Mama was better than that.
Just heard Christa on Dr. Lo’s podcast… Such important information to share! I’ve experimented with the candida diet myself and although I’m sure it WORKS, I’ve found it to be too restrictive for my own mental health. 😉 However, I do know that I struggle with a chronic candida overgrowth and I’ve found that a balanced approach of using lots of coconut oil, ACV, ginger, garlic, and oregano oil — along with almost zero refined sugar and limiting my wine intake (hard) — helps keep symptoms at bay.
Thanks always for the great info, Katie. I always refer your site to my clients and friends!
Thank you, and thanks for reading!
I’ve read the spit test is not an accurate tool to diagnose Candida. It’s even referred to as a “fake” test. Does anyone have any scientific back-up for the spit test?
Steph, I do not have any scientific data to back up the spit test; just simply my own personal experience. I had two stool tests come back negative for candida; however, I knew I had it (multiple reasons and symptoms). I did the spit test for 6 days and my saliva grew legs each day. I started Christa’s program 4 weeks ago and am noticing improvements. Just thought I would share. I hope it helps.
Hello Jackie, i just wanted to ask if Christa’s program worked for your candida?
What are your current spit test results since on the diet? Any improvements?