Look for the following:

• Strings coming down through the water from the saliva at the top
• Cloudy saliva sitting at the bottom of the glass
• Opaque specks of saliva suspended in the water

Candida is very adaptive. That's partly what makes it so pesky and virulent. It can exist in a low oxygen (hypoxic), oxygen free (anaerobic) or oxygen rich environments.

Sometimes, eating meat and dairy that is not organic can lead to yeast infections. These meats often contain antibiotics in them. Over half of the antibiotics used in the US are used by the livestock industry. These medicines are then passed to you in the meat and dairy harvested from animals who have been treated.^[3]

In your body, candida also thrives on an abundance of sugar to reproduce and become pathogenic. Diets rich in sugars themselves, foods that contain sugar (it's used as a preservative in almost everything!) as well as foods that convert to sugars (refined grains, fruits, etc) all feed candida. As the sugary food makes its way down your GI tract, or as your blood sugar levels rise, the candida in your body become activated just like it does in the dough of a baker. You may even notice your symptoms worsen 2-3 hours after eating sugar.

Kapha individuals, and those with diabetes are particularly susceptible to an overgrowth because of the presence of chronic high blood sugar levels. One of the early warnings of Kapha imbalance is excess saliva (do you wake up in a puddle of drool?). Kapha types take heed and follow a Kapha pacifying diet avoiding sugar, wheat and dairy.

All three body types can help to prevent candida by eating a diet low in sugar. Favor root vegetables and whole grains as your carbohydrate sources instead of refined flours, sugars and corn syrup. Read the ingredients of everything you buy. Sugar creeps into the sneakiest places. Beyond low sugar, eat foods you know that you can easily digest since fermentation in the gut creates an environment where candida can thrive. In other words, if foods cause gas and bloating, they are likely to aggravate candida. Therefore favor easy to digest foods and avoid difficult ones.

Weak immunity can also lead to Candida outbreaks. When the immune system is severely compromised candida can even cross protective barriers and colonize almost any organ in the body, become systemic, and lead to a life threatening condition called candidiasis.^[5]

The immune system is weakened by poor diet as well as other conditions such as allergies, autoimmune diseases, chronic inflammation, lack of sleep, toxic exposure and stress. Steroids or other immunosuppressant drugs given to people with conditions like Irritable Bowel Syndrome can also result in candida overgrowth. Parasites such as blastocystis can release chemicals that directly suppress the immune system. Cancer, chemotherapy, AIDS can all cause an imbalance of candida. Stress releases cortisol which both suppresses the immune system and raises your blood sugar level, which feeds the candida. Long term stress weakens the adrenals which can also lead to a weakened immune system.^[6] A sugar rich diet, in addition to feeding bacteria, actually depresses your immune system also, increasing your vulnerability to a candida overgrowth.^[4]

To ensure robust immunity, eat a diet that suits your dosha. Address chronic inflammation immediately. Avoid exposure to toxins. Keep a strong routine and aim to get to bed by 10pm. Talk to your practitioner about which adaptogen herbs and stress relieving practices might be helpful for you.

Therefore, an herb formula should contain digestives, hypoglycemics, laxatives, diuretics, vasodilators, and antimicrobials. Joyful Belly has used this strategy in creating Candida Cleanse Tea, designed to remedy candida imbalance in your gut.

Vatas be warned against standard anti-candida diets as they will likely make your problems worse. These diets are too depleting for Vatas since they focus on lowering blood sugar. Instead Vata needs to focus on eating easy to digest foods, following a Vata pacifying diet and cleansing the colon with a medicated enema. Vatas should still avoid refined sugars and refined flours.

Pittas will need to reduce inflammation with a Pitta pacifying diet. Cleanse the liver, cool and detoxify the blood with herbs like bhumyamalaki and guduchi. Removal of candida may be necessary for the inflammation to heal. Candida in inflamed, defective or scar tissue is more difficult to eliminate without a strong antifungal.

Kaphas will benefit from the more traditional anti-candida diets which aim to lower blood sugar. For kapha, foods rich in insoluble fiber help scrape the intestine clean.

You can help to kill off the candida outbreak by adding a 1-3 drops of the essential oil to 1 teaspoon coconut oil (mix well) while eating a candida cleansing diet. To combat oral thrush, add three drops of essential oil to a tablespoon of coconut oil and swish around your mouth for about 20 minutes. Essential oils are powerful and therefore should only be taken internally for 10 days or less. Be sure the oils you use are pure, certified organic oils.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candida_(fungus)
[2] https://draxe.com/candida-symptoms/
[3] https://www.thecandidadiet.com/causes.htm
[4] https://www.thecandidadiet.com/causes.htm
[5] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3163673/
[6] https://www.thecandidadiet.com/causes.htm
[7] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3163673/
[8] https://draxe.com/candida-symptoms/