When the cold season starts, we often feel worse than before – but we also listen more to the signals of our body. Many people experience intestinal complaints caused by the fungus Candida albicans. Everybody has Candida. However, each person has a different intestinal mucosa and gut flora and some just aren’t able to keep the attacker at bay.

Bakterium Pilz Candida Illustration

What is Candida and what are the symptoms?

Candida are yeasts that we usually eat with our meals without noticing it at all. As long as we have a healthy intestinal flora, we excrete these yeasts without further consequences for our body. Yeast fungi, e.g. Candida albicans, like to adhere to mucous membranes, e.g. in the intestine, in the mouth-throat area or in the genital area.

Symptoms of a candida infection may include bloating, mood swings, chronic fatigue and depression. However, increased candida growth can also manifest itself through infected nails, athlete’s foot or head and face eczema.

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Take the test!

With the Verisana Candida Test you can quickly and easily check yout candida levels. You collect the samples at home, send them back to us and we will provide you with your level of each analyte and whether your level falls within the reference ranges for your age. Your report contains detailed information about your Candida albicans, Candida spec., Geotrichum candidum, mold and pH levels and whether they are normal, too high or too low.

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Causes for increased Candida levels

Possible causes of increase Candida levels in your intestines can be:

  1. Antibiotics: Often, causes of excessive candida overgrowth can be the intake of antibiotics. This can happen, for example, by an antibiotic therapy or even involuntarily, through the increasing use of antibiotics in factory farming.
  2. Lack of bioavailable copper: This means that there is an excess of copper, but it can not be used by the body. Since copper fulfills the function of a fungicide, this can lead to Candida overgrowth.
  3. Zinc deficiency: Zinc is part of many essential enzyme systems, including the production of digestive enzymes and the synthesis of proteins.
  4. Inadequate biochemical energy production: Patients with high levels of Candida often have difficulties in biochemical energy production. This biochemical energy, ATP (adenosine triphosphate), is needed for all cell functions.
  5. Increased alkalinity of the digestive tract: Impairment of digestive enzyme production is observed in people with high levels of Candida. Evidence may be a low sodium-potassium ratio, which in turn can be attributed to a weak liver. This leads to an insufficient hydrochloric acid production, so that the alkalinity in the intestines increases
  6. Problems with the metabolism of short-chain fatty acids: Especially people with poor fat digestion often suffer from increased Candida growth. This is also due to a lack of digestive enzymes.
  7. Immunodeficiency: Some studies have found a link between immunodeficiency and Candida overgrowth.
  8. Carbohydrate intolerance: The body’s inability to achieve the correct metabolism of sugar reinforces fungal growth. Because the unused sugar nourishes many fungal organisms in the intestines.
  9. Psychological stress: Psychological stress has a detrimental effect on the immune system of the body, the digestive system, the glucose metabolism and the copper and zinc metabolism.
  10. Other nutritional imbalances: Toxic metals have a long-lasting and damaging effect on many processes in the body.

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The most comprehensive test for your gut health:

comprehensive_gut_biome_health_test

The Comprehensive Gut Biome & Health Test measures all the important parameters such as candida and mold, the bacterial imbalance of the intestinal flora, the integrity of the intestinal mucosa, inflammatory processes in the intestine and helicobacter pylori.

This will give you a complete overview, allowing a more precise treatment.

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What can I do against Candida?

If your stool test shows an elevated level, you can (with the help of a trained therapist) start a treatment with traditional medicine or naturopathic remedies. In addition to combating excessive Candida growth, above all, it is important to uncover the causes behind. Otherwise, repeated outbreaks are very likely, because the actual problem was not resolved by the treatment.

Often the causes are not obvious at first glance. To work flawlessly and to be able to keep fungi and “bad” bacteria in check, your gut needs a variety of minerals. Many intestinal problems can therefore also be based on a mineral deficiency or imbalance (e.g. copper/zinc).

In most cases, it also makes sense to perform a complete gut flora status, since a Candida overgrowth is usually not the only gut problem. The gut is a complex and sensitive system whose individual components influence each other in many different ways. Above all, the intestinal flora and the intestinal mucosa play an important role. If the intestinal flora is out of balance or the mucous membrane is attacked (e.g. when having a so called leaky gut syndrome), the gut is no longer able to control the growth of the fungi. Following the Candida treatment, it is therefore often useful to stabilize the gut flora and the intestinal mucosa.

In order to examine the whole system and to carry out a profound therapy, however, a comprehensive stool test such as the Comprehensive Gut Biome & Health Test is essential.