Have you ever noticed that these factors such as antibiotic use, hormone replacement therapy, high sugar and carbohydrate diets, nutrient/mineral deficiencies, toxic elements, stress levels, and birth control use coincide with the symptoms of Candida overgrowth that many people experience. These are examples of Life factors of today’s modern society that can significantly create an environment for Candida overgrowth.
Antibiotics & Your Gut Bacteria
Antibiotic use kills off not only the bad bacteria, but also the good bacteria that are beneficial for our health. In fact, our gut is the first line of defense for our immune system. As intestinal bacteria die, yeast will thrive and grow into large colonies and take over which can cause this contribution towards yeast overgrowth. While antibiotics are often prescribed to treat bacterial infections, they are not effective against viral infections.
Viral infections that should not be treated with antibiotics include: Colds, Flu, most coughs and bronchitis, and sore throat. It’s not just humans that over consume antibiotics. Animals which provide us food (like cattle and pork) are treated with them as well. Today 80% of the antibiotics used in the United States are fed to livestock! 2 This has given rise to superbugs, bacteria that is resistant to Anti-biotics and these bacteria have shown up in well-known restaurants, i.e. Chipotle.
Hormonal Balance
Hormone replacement therapy and birth control pills are widely used today for many different reasons. Low energy, sleep disturbances, mood swings, contraceptives, and weight gain, are just a few examples of why individuals will jump to the conclusion that they have a hormone imbalance. However, any increased use of the hormones estrogen or progesterone can upset the body’s natural balance.
Candida’s Effect on Your Hormones
Did you know that Candida also produces a waste product that mimics estrogen in the body?
It’s a vicious cycle if you are trying to treat symptoms with hormones and then, in turn, cause the body to send out messages telling your body that you are producing more estrogen than it really is! Estrogen dominance is a whole other topic, but we are all familiar with illnesses that are caused by this hormone such as infertility, irregular bleeding during menses, migraines, fibrocystic breasts, and even some breast cancers.
The Gut – Brain Connection
The gut is considered the second brain. The gastrointestinal tract is one of the few places that neurotransmitters are made. Neurotransmitters communicate information from our brain to our bodies like telling a muscle to contract or an endocrine gland to secrete hormones. There are many things that effect our body’s ability to produce neurotransmitters and it’s estimated that up to 86% of Americans have suboptimal neurotransmitter levels.
Stress, poor diet, drugs, and caffeine are just a few of the lifestyle factors that can affect our production. This is important, because if you have inflammation of the gut, or an imbalance of gut flora, other areas of the body will be affected and your list of symptoms expands.
Serotonin Production
Did you know that 80%-95% of the body’s total serotonin is produced and found in the gut?
Scientists are currently paying more attention to the link that the gut and the brain have and how it affects systemic inflammation. Proinflammatory substances from the gut can actually cross the bloodbrain barrier and stimulate certain enzymes, which can lead to a depletion of tryptophan. 6 Tryptophan is an amino acid precursor to serotonin. Therefore, when treating depression, it is important to understand the link between your mental and digestive health. We would say that Candida within itself isn’t the cause of the health problems. It is simply an opportunistic organism that thrives in an unhealthy host.
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