Candida - What is it and What Causes It?

Many people are not familiar with the name Candida, but everyone has heard of what it causes: yeast infections. Candida is a type of yeast and Candida albicans is the specific yeast that is responsible for yeast infections and thrush in women, men, and children.

The term Candida is used to indicate the name of the yeast and often to refer to the condition of a yeast overgrowth (as in "how to treat Candida"). Another commonly used term is candidiasis which in many cases is used interchangeably with yeast infection, although candidiasis is generally used to refer to a broader yeast overgrowth in the body.

Candida occurs naturally in the human body and in most cases it is kept in balance by beneficial bacteria in the digestive system. However, under certain circumstances Candida can grow to dangerous levels and cause a number of health problems. This is seen frequently in people with weakened immune systems. The incidence of Candida and the related health problems continue to rise in the United States and there are two contributing factors.

The first of these factors is the rise in the use, and many would argue overuse, of antibiotics. Antibiotics are prescribed for a wide range of ailments and for good reason, but there is a downside, too. The side effect of using some wide spectrum antibiotics is that in addition to killing the bad bacteria, they can also wipe out the beneficial bacteria that people need in their digestive systems. It is these beneficial bacteria that keep things such as Candida down at reasonable levels in our bodies. When the bacteria are no longer there, the Candida can quickly rise to unhealthy levels and the problems begin.

There are many situations in which taking antibiotics are both necessary and good, but one should take steps to replenish the beneficial bacteria in their body as soon as possible. One safe and easy way to do this is with probiotics or acidophilus supplements found at any health food store. These supplements are inexpensive and are a great help in getting the body back into balance as quickly as possible.

The other primary reason the Candida is such a problem these days is our diet. Candida thrives on food with lots of refined sugars, heavily processed foods, simple carbohydrates, dairy, and alcohol. That list of foods unfortunately describes the bulk of the diet for too many people in the Western world today. As long as those foods continue to be the bulk of a person's calories, they will have an impossible time getting rid of Candida. As an aside, even for those people not concerned with Candida, it is probably a good idea to cut some sugar and processed food out of the daily diet.

Fortunately, much research is being done into ways to take care of existing Candida infections and keep them from returning. For any solution to be effective it needs to look at the whole picture. Get rid of the infection, eliminate the root causes, and make the necessary changes to keep it from returning.

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