Although the word itself can cause me a bit of anxiety when I start to think of the foods I will have to give up, cleanses are a really great way to reset your immunity and get your health on track.
My first experience with a cleanse was over a decade ago and it was the candida cleanse. In my last year of high school I was over-prescribed antibiotics, and in my first year of college I started having chronic fatigue, acne breakouts, allergies, and re-occurring ear infections.
I soon learned that antibiotics not only kill the bad bacteria in your intestines, but also the good, healthy flora that helps fight bad bacteria and diseases. So I could only imagine what multiple rounds had done to my system. With all the good bacteria gone, the fungus (which exists naturally in our bodies in small amounts) and bad bacteria can invade your system. (I know this sounds like a plot from a bad sci-fi movie, but I promise you this is not fiction.) This fungus overgrowth is also known as candida and candida feeds on sugar which is in practically everything we consume. Once this overgrowth begins, the immune system is further weakened when the candida attack the intestines walls and cause leaky gut - allowing undigested food particles, minerals, parasites, etc to leak into your blood stream. Some of the symptoms include, but are not limited to:
- Inability to focus
- Persistent fatigue
- Cravings for sugar/alcohol
- Irritability
- Bloating
- Acid reflux
- Indigestion
- Mucus in stool
- Acne
- Cysts
- Fungal infections of skin/nails
- Athletes foot
- Mucus in throat
- Sinus congestion
- Chronic post-nasal drip
- Re-occurring yeast infections
- Frequent colds/flu
- Food sensitivites
- Inability to loss weight
- Heart palpitations
- Chronic body/joint pain
- Allergies
Prescribing antibiotics to small children is especially harmful as their flora and immune systems are still developing. It can even take adults years to recover from candida overgrowth, depending on the severity.
The cleanse I completed to balance the candida had two parts: supplemental and dietary. The supplements I took were part of the Candistroy system by Nature's Secret. One of the supplements was a pro-biotic which is used to restore the natural flora in our system. I recommend, even outside of a cleanse, that everyone take a pro-biotic daily because we are always trying to maintain balance in our digestion and this is a great way to do that. The other supplement had a blend of herbs that actually target/kill and flush out the candida.
Since almost everything we eat has sugar, the candida diet is a very strict one.
No fruits and only low sugar vegetables are allowed. No shellfish, but most fish is allowed, as well as poultry. The only grains allowed are gluten free grains, with no yeast.
The other important aspect of this cleanse is facilitating the excretion of the candida/toxins from your system.
Drinking plenty of water, 8-10 cups a day, with lemon helps flush candida out and alleviates some of the detox symptoms. Exercising at least 3 hours a weeks helps to increase circulation and allows you to sweat out toxins. Lastly, are the detox baths. This consists of soaking in a tub of hot water (as hot as you can stand) with epson salt or ginger root for 10-20 minutes, and rinsing off in the shower afterwards.
After 30 days of the candida cleanse, I had didn't have any more ear issues or allergies, my acne had cleared up, and I had lost 5 lbs/2 dress sizes. If you think you might need to cleanse, but aren't sure if the candida cleanse is the right one, take this questionnaire, and talk to your Doctor/Naturopath about it.
Even if you don't want to commit to 30 days, in just10-14 days, you can start to see some improvements.
Happy Cleansing!
