Candida: Restoring Balance with Ayurveda

Candida albicans is a yeast-like fungus that lives in the mouth and throat, the intestinal tract and the genital tract. Normally, candida lives in a healthy balance with other intestinal flora. However, stress, poor diet, antibiotics, oral contraceptives, and poor sleep and exercise routines can affect the healthy balance, allowing the yeast bacteria to grow out of control throughout the body. This can cause abdominal bloating and gas, coated tongue, nausea, fatigue, respiratory system imbalance, frequent urinary track and genital area infections, skin problems, attention deficit and mood swings.

Ayurvedic healers recommend a holistic approach to restoring balance that includes diet, lifestyle changes and the use of herbs and spices. Here are some suggestions for restoring balance:

• Avoid sweet, heavy, or cold foods and carbonated beverages.
• Don't use caffeine, nicotine, or alcohol
• Don't eat processed food, refined or junk food. Reduce consumption of white rice.
• Avoid yeast breads, pastas, aged cheeses, mushrooms and peanuts.
• Don't eat fermented foods, such as vinegar or products that contain fermented ingredients.
• Eat plenty of vegetables. Include small portions of bitter and pungent in combination with tridoshic vegetables. Ayurvedic healers recommend briefly steam-cooking vegetables, covered, rather than eating them raw, to improve digestibility.
• Start the day with the hot lemon treatment made with the juice of one lemon added to a cup of hot water. The acids in the lemon help discourage the growth of yeast while the hot drink helps with regularity and keeps the digestive track free of toxin build-up.
• Blend equal parts of lemon juice and olive oil to use as a dressing on vegetables.
• Whole grains and beans are filling and full of fiber.
• Drink a tall glass of digestive lassi each day at lunch. Add fresh ginger root, rock salt, dry-roasted and ground cumin, fresh cilantro and organic rosehips in a blend of 40% yogurt and 60% pure water.
• Cook with spices that enhance digestion and fight toxins, such as turmeric, black pepper, dried ginger, cumin, cinnamon and fenugreek.
• Drink lots of water.
• Choose foods that you like and that make you feel well. It helps to keep a journal to track of what you eat and what you enjoy.

photo by Zsuzsanna Kilian