When I first began to research how to naturally heal psoriasis, candidiasis was one of the first infections I found to be associated with psoriasis. In fact, the first diet I ever followed in an attempt to naturally heal was an anti-candida diet. My psoriasis healing practice has certainly evolved since then, but this was a good place to start to understand holistic healing principles.
So, does candida cause psoriasis? Although there are several other factors in the development and severity of psoriasis, candida overgrowth is certainly one of the main types of infections that need to be eliminated if you wish to heal your psoriasis and get your overall health back on track. So in short: Candida is probably not the cause, but it is something that should be taken into consideration when attempting to heal your skin through natural methods.
WHAT IS CANDIDA?
Candida is a type of fungus or yeast that lives naturally in the intestines, skin, and mucus membranes of the human body. In most cases, the presence of candida is completely harmless as it is simply a part of our body makeup. It is part of a biological system of checks and balances that keeps our bodies in a state of good health. Candida only becomes a issue when it begins to grow out of control and spread into other parts of the body.
When this candida overgrowth occurs, it leaves the human body susceptible to many different diseases and infections. Once fungus begins to multiply at an accelerated rate, it can be difficult to slow down. Typically, candida overgrowth starts in the digestive tract. It then will graduate to damaging your gut lining causing or contributing to “leaky gut syndrome”. When candida enters your blood stream and spreads to to other parts of your body, this is referred to as a systemic candida infection known as candidiasis
Although it is certainly not the only cause, candida can play a big role in the state of your psoriasis. The most important aspect of controlling and eliminating psoriasis is maintaining good digestive health. Candida as well as other kinds of fungus and toxins are obviously not going to have a positive impact on your gut.
It should also be noted that candida overgrowth is also commonly associated with other infections such as genital yeast infections and oral thrush. In these cases, it is possible that your candida overgrowth is limited to only your genital area or your mouth. But If you are struggling with recurring bouts of yeast infection or thrush, it is likely a sign of a more widespread systemic infection.
WHAT CAUSES CANDIDA OVERGROWTH?
There are many different factors that can cause candida overgrowth. Basically, candida will begin to grow out of control if it is frequently being exposed to unhealthy substances or energies that it can feed off of. Below this paragraph, I have listed the 3 main causes.
Poor diet
Poor diet is first on this list because it is the most common cause in my opinion. Foods such as simple sugars, refined carbohydrates, dairy, and alcohol feed candida and cause it to multiply and in turn cause a number of different health issues. Considering the prominence of such foods in today’s society, it is easy to understand how candida overgrowth is becoming a very common issue. By eliminating foods such as these ones from your diet, you are taking a crucial first step in getting you candidiasis under control.
Antibiotics
Antibiotics are another thing that can upset the balance within your body and excite candida growth. While there are certainly some instances where antibiotics are necessary to fight off a life threatening infection, antibiotic use can cause a number of complications. While antibiotics are proven to be effective in killing off bad bacteria that cause disease and infection, they also kill off the good bacteria as well. As antibiotic use has become more and more normalized in our society, I think it is important to keep in mind that you really should only take them if you absolutely need them.
Stress
Many people with psoriasis believe that their skin reactions are closely related to their stress levels. The same can be said for candida. If you are under a lot of stress, you become more vulnerable to toxin build up as your immune system is weakened. Immune function is key in eliminating and preventing candida overgrowth. Learning to keep your stress levels in check is an invaluable tool for healing in general.
DOES THE ANTI-CANDIDA DIET WORK?
As I mentioned in the introduction, the anti-candida diet was the first diet that I ever tried in my skin healing journey. It is basically a paleo approach but is a little more restrictive. What the diet consists of is animal proteins (meat, eggs, and fish), non-starchy greens and vegetables (broccoli, asparagus, kale, spinach, celery…), low sugar fruits (avocados, lemons, and limes), gluten free grains (quinoa, buckwheat, millet…), some healthy fats (nuts, olive oil, coconut oil, flax seed oil…), certain dairy products (butter, kefir, yogurt), and herbs (Cilantro, basil, oregano, ginger, cinnamon…).
The list of foods to avoid includes sugars (honey, white sugar, maple syrup, agave…), grains with gluten (barley, rye, wheat…), high sugar fruits (bananas, dates, mangos, raisins, grapes…, processed meats and toxic fish (processed meat, tuna, shellfish, other dairy products (milk, cheese cream…), condiments (barbecue, ketchup, mayonnaise, soy sauce, white vinegar…), alcohol (beer, wine, spirits…) , and refined fats (margarine, canola oil, soybean oil…). Basically, the diet suggests that you avoid anything that isn’t a part of their “foods to eat list”.
So does the anti-candida diet work? Although I do think that the diet is based on good principles and can certainly produce some great results in terms of killing of candida, I do not think that this is necessarily the best diet to repair your gut health and heal your skin disease. There are other diet options that are more sustainable and less restrictive.
HOW TO ELIMINATE CANDIDA
In my experience, following a plant based diet has been the best option for not only eliminating candida but also healing my psoriasis. Many plant based diets are especially high in sugars and carbs. But as long as you are eating the rights kinds of sugars and carbs, I do not think that they will cause any problems in terms of candida overgrowth.
With that in mind, every case is different. If you think that you would benefit from adopting some of the principles from the anti-candida diet and adding them into your plant based approach, that may be a good idea. For instance, you can choose to eat gluten free grains and low glycemic fruits until you are comfortable adding them back in.
The reason why I do not believe the anti-candida diet to be the best option for most psoriasis sufferers is because it is rather restrictive and is based on a paleo approach. While I do think that certain versions of the paleo diet can be effective to a certain extent, I do no think that it is the most effective healing diet. I also believe that some of the foods that the diet restricts are much more valuable to the healing process than some of the foods the diet endorses.
For example, I think high sugar fruits such as bananas or berries are a much better healing option than say meat. I’m not saying you should never eat meat again, but I am saying that it certainly does not contain the healing power that these fruits have. My idea of a healing diet is a less restrictive outlook that includes an abundance of foods that are easy to digest and packed with detoxifying and nourishing properties.
If you are interested in learning more about healing your skin disease with a plant based approach, click here to be directed to my free simple guide based on what to eat and what not to eat to heal psoriasis, eczema, and dermatitis naturally.
