Candida Albicans, a diploid fungus (a form of yeast) is the causal agent of opportunistic infections in humans, the most common being oral and vaginal infections. But, I would like to add that not only women suffer from Candida but also men in a variety of forms.

Among the many organisms that live in the human mouth and digestive tract is the yeast Candida Albicans, which under normal circumstances lives in 80 percent of the human population with no harmful effects generally, although overgrowth results in Candidiasis. Candidiasis. Candidiasis is commonly known as "thrush", and is a common condition that is usually easily cured in most people.

Health symptoms and complications of Candida may include: bladder infections, energy loss, puffy eyes, fatigue, food cravings, hay fever, heartburn, hyperactivity, inflammation, itching, insomnia, migraine, mouth infections, rashes, sore throat, thrush and thyroid problems.

As well as anti-fungal drugs and eliminating antibiotics, diet is an important part of most Candida treatment programs. The purpose of a Candida reduction diet is to eliminate sugary starchy foods that "feed" the yeast infestation, by sticking with a restricted foods list. Once you get on the anti-candida diet you can expect to see an improvement within 2-4 weeks. Once you have the Candida under control then you can slowly start adding restricted foods back into your diet.

Here are a few tips for sticking with a Candida reducing diet.

Try to eliminate your carbohydrate intake. Sugars are what feeds Candida. So it is important to minimize or eliminate carbohydrate intake for a while.

Reduce food that contain yeast. Foods that contain yeast should be completely eliminated. These are foods like, bread, beer, wine, cheese.

Eliminate dairy from your diet. Dairy foods should be removed from the diet because Candida can reduce the body's ability to digest fats which can result in a build up of fatty acids in your system. You don’t want that.

Stay away from mushrooms, Brie and moldy or mold-containing foods. This will exacerbate your Candida.

Stop eating processed and packaged foods if you haven’t already. These foods and drinks are loaded with sugar, high glycemic carbohydrates, yeast or other ingredients that will feed the Candida.

The biggest thing to remove is sugar. Remove it from your diet completely. Sugar feeds yeast like nothing else. Start reading food labels and if you see anything that ends in "ose" such as maltose, dextrose, sucrose or even maltodextrin stay away from it. Basically anything that tastes sweet with the exception of stevia, don’t eat it.

Using pure Stevioside – white stevia powder, a natural plant extract that is around 200 – 300 times sweeter than sugar can satisfy you craving for sweets. You can add stevia to hot or cold beverages as well as using it for cooking and baking.

Here are a few tips when using stevia.

When baking with pure stevia powder mix 1/8 of a teaspoon with 1 cup of unsweetened apple sauce. Because stevia is 250 times sweeter than sugar you lose a lot of volume from replacing the sugar.

When recipes ask for brown sugar you can use an equal amount of Steviva Brand Stevia Blend with 2 tablespoons of molasses added. If you are not using the blend and need a brown sugar substitute then you can use 1 cup of unsweetened apple sauce 1/8 of a teaspoon of Steviva Brand Stevia Powder and 2 tablespoons of molasses.

I would like to add that aside from eliminating sugar, grains, fruits and high glycemic carbohydrate you should drink at least 4 quarts of clean filtered water. Drinking copious amounts of water. flushes the Candida out of your system as well as aiding in stabilizing blood sugar level. Instead of soft drinks or powdered drink mixes that are loaded with chemicals and sugar, I suggest is adding the juice of half a lemon to 32 ounces of water with a sprinkle of Steviva Brand Stevia Powder. Aside from being less than 2 carbs, you will get the health benefits that the stevia provides along with the vitamin C and electrolytes that lemon have. You can substitute limes for lemons if you get bored and break the routine even more by adding a little unsweetened cranberry juice.

Thom King is the President of Steviva Brands, Inc. Steviva manufactures and distributes Stevia powder, Stevia blend, Stevia leaves and Yerba Mate. All of Steviva's product are all natural and have no calories or carbs. Subscribe to Mind, Body and Spirit is a weekly email publication which covers topics pertaining to a sharp and focused mind, motivation, healthy body and spiritual growth. It's free and you can cancel anytime. Go to http://www.steviva.com for more information. Thom's direct email is thom.king@steviva.com.

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