Candida Diet Meal Plan – Overview
Candida is the commonest fungus or yeast species in human bodies found in various areas like the digestive tract, skin, toenails, vagina, rectum, and mouth.
While candida is harmless, an overgrowth can cause severe mental, cognitive, and physical problems. As a result, some experts recommend a candida diet meal plan to counter yeast increase and promote a healthy gut.
The Candida meal plan is all about a low-carb and low-sugar diet. According to specialists, this diet is not scientifically proven, and any benefits you gain could be due to better eating habits in general.
This post will explore how the candida diet works according to people who advocate for the same.
How Does the Candida Diet Meal Plan Work According to its Proponents?
Candida Diet Meal Plan
Many studies have been conducted to explore the risks of candida overgrowth.
However, treatment options are neither well-studied nor scientifically proven. Proponents of the candida diet claim that it can be an effective treatment alternative.
The candida diet eliminates yeast, sugar, and flour sources from your diet and promotes healthy fats, lean proteins, non-starchy vegetables, and supplements to boost the process. Doing so, experts say, breaks yeast overgrowth.
Ali Miller, a registered dietician nutritionist and a certified diabetes educator in Huston, says: “Candida diet consumers should use food supplements and compounds that promote the suffocation and elimination of yeast and its potential by-products from the body.”
Insufficient Research
Many experts highly doubt the effectiveness of the candida diet.
Abbey Sharp, blogger and registered dietician, says, “There is no sufficient research to show that this diet works. While many people blame yeast overgrowth for many conditions, we neither know what triggers candida overgrowth nor the effectiveness of the candida diet. No existing research has entirely supported the effectiveness of a low sugar diet in treating candida overgrowth.”
A recently published review suggested some sugars or carbohydrates could promote yeast overgrowth. However, Abbey says no existing evidence has demonstrated that yeast interferes with the gut and that adopting the candida diet will make a difference.
It is worth noting that existing research is available in test-tube experiments, which cannot replace human-based studies.
Why does the Candida Meal Plan Eliminate some Products from the Diet?
Experts claim that gluten can harm your intestinal lining. However, there is no evidence to show the effect of gluten on the intestinal wall in people who do not suffer from gluten intolerance.
High sugar consumption may intensify candida infections, especially in people with weak immune systems.
A high-carb meal plan might trigger candida overgrowth in some people, but there is no scientifically proven evidence to show that more yeast in the body increases the risk of infection.
The candida diet eliminates some dairy products. Lactose, or milk sugar, makes the mouth more acidic, stimulating Candida overgrowth.
Still, no research has confirmed these claims so far.
Foods containing high content of mold, artificial ingredients, pesticides, and preservatives are also eliminated.
However, no proven evidence has linked these factors to an increased danger of candida infections.
Experts discourage caffeine and alcohol to promote healthy lifestyle habits and reduce the chances of dietary cheating.
The Candida diet meal plan is designed to include whole meals that can be good for your gut, reduce inflammation, and stop candida from growing.
How to Get Started with the Candida Cleanse
Candida Diet Meal Plan
Advocates of the candida diet recommend getting a candida clearance before starting the candida diet. The cleanse is a temporary diet that advocates say eliminates toxins from the body and stress from the digestive tract.
Even without scientific proof, a Candida cleanse can prepare your body for the Candida diet.
No human studies have proven the benefits or effectiveness of cleanses and detox diets. Two of the standard body cleansing methods are:
- Drinking lots of fluids like bone broth and water
- Consuming a vegetable-only diet like steamed veggies and salads accompanied by a small portion of daily protein.
Body cleanses can trigger negative symptoms in some people at the beginning, like headaches, fatigue, sleep pattern disruptions, and mood swings.
Your candida cleanses should not exceed a few days. After the cleanse, you can start with the Candida diet meal plan.
When can you Start Experiencing Results from the Candida Diet Meal Plan?
There are no defined timeframes within which the Candida diet meal plan works.
However, its proponents claim that users can start witnessing reports within weeks, while others may need up to a few months to report any positive changes.
If you choose to implement the candida diet, work closely with a healthcare provider to guarantee an appropriate intake of nutrients.
What You Should Consider Before Beginning the Candida Diet Meal Plan
Start moderately. Do not eliminate gluten, caffeine, and sugar from your diet simultaneously. Instead, eliminate one product at a time. Doing so will ease the process.
It is a temporary process. You should only use this diet until your symptoms improve. Avoid using it as a long-term diet plan.
Potential Benefits of the Candida Diet Meal Plan
The candida diet focuses on healthy foods. As a result, it has some potential benefits, even though it is not scientifically proven.
Consuming whole foods can play a significant role in your weight loss efforts. It also promotes heart health gut function and reduces body inflammation.
The diet also eliminates sugar-rich foods, often linked to various conditions like metabolic syndrome, heart disease, diabetes, and obesity.
This diet can benefit you even if you do not suffer from candida overgrowth.
Potential Drawbacks
The key drawback of the Candida diet meal plan is the lack of human research to prove its effectiveness.
Even then, one three-month study conducted on 120 participants with intestinal-based candida overgrowth showed that those who changed their diet had a considerable reduction of candida yeast in stool than those who did not.
Another study conducted on mice with weak immune systems reported that sugar consumption increased the growth of candida along the digestive tract.
In another study conducted on healthy people to assess candida growth before, during, and after consuming a high sugar diet, researchers found that the high sugar diet had minimal impact on candida growth.
Another drawback of the candida diet would be its strictness. You will need discipline and commitment to keep on to it.
The good news is that the diet is short-lived, and you only need to adopt it when you have a candida infection.
Takeaway
Advocates of the candida meal plan claim it eliminates gluten, sugar, some dairy products, and alcohol to reverse candida overgrowth.
There is no scientific proof to demonstrate that the candida diet is adequate. However, advocates of the meal plan claim that it can relieve symptoms of a candida infection.
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