The Cleanse of All Cleanses
I mentioned in one of my last posts that I am about to embark on a
30 Day detox and now I am here to explain. This detox is not just any detox, it is a very specific cleanse designed to eliminate Candida. For those who don’t know what Candida, or Candidiasis is, let me briefly explain…
Everyone has an amount of candida in their body. It’s a fungus or yeast that lives in your intestines and is a natural part of your body flora. It is when this yeast becomes overgrown and spreads throughout the intestines that one begins to experience a multitude of symptoms including fatigue, headaches, bowel problems, infections, irritability, loss of concentration, the list goes on. This happens mainly due to diet, but can be affected by antibiotics, contraceptives and/or smoking. Learn more here.
Candidiasis is supposed to be able to be eliminated with a strict diet along with vitamins and supplements but the problem I have learned is this: even if you have killed off the bacteria and your symptoms disappear, the candida spores can plant themselves in your intestines and go into hibernation. Then, the minute your body is in the right state for them to reproduce, it comes back!!! Last summer I did the Innovite Yeast Buster Intestinal Cleanse and followed a strict diet for 2 months, eliminating everything from wheat, sugar, gluten, dairy, coffee, alcohol, even fruit from my diet. Then, 2 months into it, I went on a cruise in the Mediterranean, indulged in a few treats and BAM!! Instant symptoms!! Talk about a way to ruin your vacation after such a strict cleanse for so long!!
So this time I am here to do it right and I wanted to share my experience and advice through this blog because I know there are a lot of people out there suffering with Candida who don’t know how to deal with it. Now I am not a doctor or a nutrition expert but I have had a lot of experience with Candida. My first Candida cleanse took place when I was 12 years old. Since then I have been on multiple diets and detoxes, I have done liver cleanses, taken herbs, you name it, I’ve tried it. And over the years I feel like I’ve finally developed an understanding of what it is I need to do, and the knowledge and ability to be able to actually do it. It’s hard because a) the diet is so strict (I’ll post the entire “Yes” and “No” List for you to see at the end of this post) and b) there are not a lot of straight forward, easy to follow sites that can get a person through this whole process.
SOOOOO starting Monday, June 18th, 2012 I will be starting a full on Candida Cleanse to eliminate this evil overgrowth for good!! It’s going to be at least 30 days of a strict anti-candida diet consisting of mostly plant based foods and then I will slowly reincorporated certain foods back into my diet but stick to a gluten/wheat/sugar free existence for the long run. I know I have to make a permanent lifestyle change in order to keep the candida away for good. I will be posting recipes, tips, information on helpful products and herbs, updates on my daily challenges and experiences and answering any questions that anyone might have on this topic as best I can!!
If you’re interested in what exactly this diet consists of, what is ok to eat, what is not ok to eat, download the pdf version of The Food List here. This list, from WholeApproach.com, is the most extensive list that I have found and covers in depth what you can have and what you should avoid as well as other “in between foods” that, depending on the person, should be limited to one or two times a week.
I would love to hear about other people’s experiences with Candida and if anyone is up for taking the challenge alongside me, I will be posting ways in which I am preparing for the cleanse in my next post. This gives just a little over a week to prepare to kick butt with this 30 day cleanse. I’m actually so pumped!!! Stay tuned!
Cuts & Pastes 