Foods to Avoid to Halt Candida Yeast Infections

You have probably heard the saying, “Food is medicine.”  This is particularly true when it comes to preventing and treating yeast infections because yeast is a living organism that can only thrive if you feed it the foods that it loves such as -

• Aged cheeses such as smoky Gouda, old cheddar, Oka
• Alcohol of all kinds
• Chocolate – even the dark chocolate that is usually good for you
• Dried fruits including raisins, dried apricots, acai berries etc.
• Gluten-rich foods such as store-bought muffins and pasta
• Foods with nitrates such as packaged meats, hot dogs and ham
• Honey
• Ice cream
• Nut butters including peanut butter, cashew butter and almond butter
• Pickles
• Raw mushrooms
• Soy sauce
• Sprouts
• Sugar in anything!
• Yeast including healthy yeast products like milk brewer’s yeast.

The above is a list of foods that are known to make yeast infections worse if you have one. If you are being overcome by an acute attack of yeast or have as severe condition like thrush or bacterial vaginosis then you should also avoid fruits such as –

• Oranges
• Grapefruits
• Lemons
• Limes
• Pineapple
• Tomatoes

You will be able to add this foods back slowly into your diet after the inflammation caused by your yeast infection has lessened and you are no longer suffering severe symptoms

Avoiding the foods on this list might seem very difficult because candida manages to burrow into the intestinal wall and spread, like a wild fungus throughout the entire body.  You may find yourself craving, yeast, flour, sugar and pasta simply because the candida yeast you are hosting in your body needs to be fed.

Candida is actually the main cause of many carbohydrate food cravings and the weight gain that can result from it.  Candida yeast can also cause bloating, gas depression, a rounded belly, fatigue and brain fog.  However, this is not the worst thing that candida does to your body. It also creates an environment in which other organism can live. These parasitic organisms act like leeches in the intestines, consuming nutrients meant for you and causing you hunger and uncontrollable cravings.

Dandelion Greens for Detox

One way to fight back is with food. Thinking of it as medicine, keep it mind that food is most effective if eaten raw. It is also a good idea to consume vegetable and produce that is a bit riper as they contain the most candida-fighting enzymes.  Herbs that can help fight candida include echinacea, golden seal, tea tree oil, barberry, chamomile, cinnamon, dandelion, fennel, marshmallow and peppermint.

It also helps to drink as much water as you can possibly tolerate in a day, far beyond the recommended ten eight ounce glasses of water a day. Make sure that the water you are drinking is purified or distilled water or you will just be “watering” the garden of yeast thriving inside you with more toxins.

Here at the Pinewood Natural Health Center we understanding how overwhelming and tiring a chronic yeast problem can be. We are experts in helping our clients fight the tyranny of candida yeast that has taken over the body. We can, using our special programmes of detoxification and recovery help you easily conquer this problem and they other health issues, such as bad breath and obesity that often go with it.

For more information or to book a consultation about our restorative diet and weight loss programs  visit the Pinewood Natural Health Centre website that has a list of full services and products at www.pinewood.ca or call our Toronto Office at  (416)-656- 8100.  We also have an office in Pickering, Ontario at (905)-427-0057. You can also email us at info@pinewoodhealth.ca and we would be happy to answer any question that you have about our holistic health services.

Are You In A State of Acidosis?

You know you are in a state of acidosis when it seems like your entire life has become toxic.  The ill health that results from eating foods and indulging in activities that create acidic conditions in our bodies, such as smoking cigarettes and other substances, drinking alcohol and eating refined foods, affects other areas of our lives as well. Our mental and emotional capacities can be compromised and in turn also affect our working and personal relationships.

A state of acidosis leads to problems such as mucous congestion, inflammation, and eventually degenerative changes in the body that is the basis of most chronic disease. Correcting this acidic condition halts the progress of disease and aging.

Acidosis Might Be A Result of Self-Neglect

Illness is a call to us from our bodies.  The message is, “It’s time to change.”

If you are searching for naturopathic services, it is possible that you are feeling unwell enough to try and make a big change. Often people come to us when other types of treatments, such a prescription medications, have not worked. Many people who visit a naturopath simply feel a bit “burnt out” and like they have been “letting things go” health wise.

It is time to pay attention to the little nagging red flags about your health such as high blood pressure, weight gain or fatigue and do something about it. Most of these symptoms are the result of your body living in a state of acidosis. Sometimes it is the treatments for disease that can cause acidosis. A good example would be the individual who has undergone general anaesthesia and needs to detoxify or the person who is recovering from the effects of cancer treatments.

Correcting Acidosis By Eating Alkaline

In order to correct this condition you need to eat foods that are less acidic. Vegetables, raw foods, vegan foods and unrefined foods are the best. Eating alkaline foods allows you to slowly but surely bring your body, and often your life, back into balance.

Many people who switch to alkaline food or even subtly start incorporating them into the diet will experience some sort of detoxification process. Usually these symptoms are mild and there are some people do not suffer from any symptoms of detoxification at all. Usually the symptoms are mild and include headache, nausea and feeling foggy. 

Detoxification starts with depriving our bodies of their usual intake of poisons from water, air and food and replacing those toxins with fresh juices and raw foods.  Switching over from an unhealthy diet full of acidic is not easy for some people but doing so is absolutely necessary if you want to feel better.

This alkalizing/detoxification process can seem a bit daunting at first because for many people it means getting rid of some questionable lifestyle habits.  Yet, this becomes easier if you think of one step at a time. Here at Pinewood we are here to help you take those first steps towards recovering your health.  Then you will not feel overwhelmed. Even with a few baby steps taken in the right direction, you will begin to feel revitalized!

For more information or to book a consultation about our restorative diet and weight loss programs ,visit the Pinewood Natural Health Clinic website that has a list of full services and products at www.pinewood.ca or call our Toronto Office at  (416)-656- 8100.  We also have an office in Pickering, Ontario at (905)-427-0057. You can also email us at info@pinewoodhealth.ca and we would be happy to answer any question that you have about our holistic health services.

Avoiding Caffeine and Caffeine Withdrawal

As part of your natural prescription for wellness at Pinewood Health Institute you may be put on a particular diet plan or cleansing regimen that asks you to eliminate caffeine from your diet for a number of days. For some individuals this is an almost inconceivable concept as they depend on that first cup of java in the morning to wake them up and make them more productive.

However, caffeine is not just found in coffee. It is also found in energy drinks, dark chocolate, many pain medications and soft drinks. It is also found in tea, and in especially high amounts in green tea.

Symptoms of Caffeine Withdrawal

Withdrawing from caffeine can summon up the typical symptoms of withdrawal, which include fatigue, irritability, headache, anxiety, brain fog and anxiety.  That’s the bad news.  The good news is that these side effects do not last long, usually between two to nine days for most people.

The other good news is that there are many people who do NOT suffer from any symptoms when they withdraw from caffeine. In fact some people experience benefits such as less indigestion, acidic stomach and feeling less jittery.  For some people, not drinking a lot of coffee helps them sleep better at night and makes them less distractible when they are focusing on a task.

Why Can’t I Have Caffeine?

Although caffeine makes us feel good, it only offers a temporary fix. In the long run it exhausts the body by over stimulating the adrenal glands to produce adrenaline. This triggers us to experience the “fight or flight” response that is a biological reaction to stress.  When you experience stress, your body goes into overdrive producing cortisol, which is one of the main causes of excess belly fat.

Cortisol is not a complete villain or our bodies would not naturally produce it. It is only harmful when we produce too much of it. When the body produces smaller amounts it improves our awareness, performance and memory. In crisis situations, it is produced to create extra energy and lower our sensitivity to pain.

Caffeine artificially and unnecessarily causes our cortisol levels to rise which in turn triggers lowered cortisol levels, decreased thyroid function, cognitive difficulties, decreased bone density and muscle tissue, sky-rocketing blood pressure, inflammatory reactions and a lower resistance to disease.

Also if you have the proverbial “muffin top “you can probably blame that on cortisol overload as well.

Strategies for Avoid Caffeine

Aside from avoiding colas, coffee, teas and drugs that have caffeine you will likely have to avoid foods that are coffee-flavoured such as yogurt and ice cream. It is important to read labels.

Dark chocolate has the most caffeine. Even a small serving of dark chocolate can have up to 30 milligrams of caffeine in it, nearly the same amount as a can of cola (as compared with 90-150 milligrams in a cup of coffee and 30-70 milligrams in a cup of caffeinated tea).

The withdrawal symptoms from caffeine can be very real and for most people you have no real choice but to put up with them until your craving goes away. If you can do this you will be amazed at the sense of freedom you will feel from not having to rely on a beverage to kick-start your metabolism every morning and also how much money you will save from not buying a big designer coffee every day.

For more information or to book a consultation about our restorative diet and weight loss programs or any health issue you may have ,visit the Pinewood Natural Health Clinic website that has a list of full services and products at www.pinewood.ca or call our Toronto Office at  (416)-656- 8100.  We also have an office in Pickering, Ontario at (905)-427-0057. You can also email us at info@pinewoodhealth.ca and we would be happy to answer any question that you have about our holistic health services.