First off, let me just say how much I am loving the fact that this thread has become a "community" thread! I was feeling pretty alone for a while there and wow has that changed! I no longer feel like no one else is going through this right now! This is wonderful. Don't get me wrong, I'm not happy that any of us have candida, but at least we have someone to share the misery of all the side effects with!

Debbie: I feel your depression, believe me. I had to break down and go to Cotton Ginny today to get bigger pants, not smaller. Between the candida and quitting smoking, I am 10 pounds heavier now than when I started LC'ing. (Still can't bring myself to change my stats, tho! ) That wasn't the plan!! I was supposed to be shopping for smaller clothes! That was pretty painful!

I will continue to take my supplements, eat my anti-candida foods and try not to watch the calendar! I had orginally hoped to be at my goal weight by my birthday, which is in May. I think I may be looking at something more like late August / September at the earliest. That's the hardest pill to swallow. Once it starts moving in the right direction it will feel a lot better, that's for sure. Let's hang in there together! It's nice to have someone to commiserate with!

slm6596: Thanks for the info! I have already spent $50.00 on supplements, so I won't try this one right away. Let me know how it works for you though, and I'll look at it for later in the game. I appreciate the information, always!

nsmith4366: I am only on day 2 of the anti-candida plan, but what you've got there looks right to me. I got all my information here and on the web, and it looks as though we are getting the same message. The only thing I'm not sure about is the yogurt cheese? I've never heard of it. I've got the plain yogurt for the good bacteria, and I'll list the supplements that I'm taking as well. Then we can compare!

Active Acidophilus & Bifidus (same as what's in the yogurt)
Made by Natural Factors, 1 pill - 3x a day.
Inner Sync Sybiotic Intestinal Bacteria Balancer
Made by Natural Factors, 1 pill - 3x a day.
Milk Thistle Extract (250mg)
Made by Herbal Factors, 2 pills - 3x a day
Yeast-Cleanse (contains: carylic acid, pau d'arco, grapefruit seed extract and tea tree oil)
Made by Solaray, 2 pills - 3x a day (they make me burp grapefruit!)
Vita-Vim Level 2 Multi-Vitamin (yeast-free!)
Made by Jamieson, 1 pill - 1x a day
Vitamin C (500mg)
Made by Walmart, 4 pills - 2x a day

It's a lot, but I just can't see how any yeast can survive such an onslaught!

I plan on taking all the above for the next 6 weeks, then once my candida is under control, I will continue to take the Acidophilus & Bifidus and possibly the yeast cleanse (in a much smaller dose) as well as the multi and the C. Kind of a maintenance "good Lord, never let me go through this again" measure!

I just have to say that my boyfriend is so great. He wants to make me dinner tonight, and he keeps asking me what I can have and can't have, and is planning an entire meal around me. What a sweetie. He's incredibly supportive. I feel very blessed today. For him, and for all of you!

Thanks all!

Keep in touch! for y'all!

You are so lucky! Hug your boyfriend for all of us! Everyone should have that much support!

I wrote the Yogurt Cheese people (they have a website) and asked THEM! I'll let you know what they say!

N

That would be great. I saw yogurt cheese advertised at a local store, but I won't buy it until I hear what they have to say.

I was talking to a girl at work who had Candida a while ago. It took her 4 weeks to see a difference, but then she lost 10 pounds almost immediately and has since lost about 20-25. She warned me that when the Candida starts to die off we will really feel like crap for about a week while our bods detox. Nice to have something to look forward to... not!

So, that's that. We'll wait and see!

By the way, I love the "I am not a number anymore" message in lieu of stats. I salute you for that! I hate numbers!

Cheers!

OKAY, a big NO on the yogurt cheese, despite the happy friendly bacteria in there, the MOLD factor in the cheese wins in the end.

The yogurt cheese makers said it was fine (of course they are selling the cheese), but the experts on Candida/Yeasts and Molds said no way. Cheese is cheese. One expert claimed that heated cheese and mushrooms is fine but when that was put to the test - everyone else I contacted said NO WAY.

Sorry, no cheese, not even yogurt cheese, no mushrooms, not even if heated. Sorry. The only encouraging thing they said was a SMALL amount may be tolerated...but a habit will encourage yeast to grow regardless of what good bacteria they add. Just like vinegar...you could add all the junk you wanted to that too, and the vinegar wins.

I went to several websites and wrote and consulted with experts.

Well, so much for that. I have been eating Mozzarella because the Candida web sites that I've seen have all said that was okay. No vinegar, mushrooms, malted beverages, yeasts, wheats, etc. however. I wonder if Mozza is even okay now?

Thanks for the info. I appreciate it.

All cheeses are molds...the relation to yeasts - I don't know the details. I'll look it all up tomorrow - I'm tired. I'm going to bed now.

Later we will learn more.
N

I'm with you Donna - I'd heard that Mozzarella cheese as well as cream cheese was okay on the Candida diet, not that I eat a lot of Mozzarella (I mean if you can't have lasagna or pizza, why eat mozzarella, right ). I actually eat more cream cheese - been giving mock danish a run for the money lately - but stupidly forgot that I shouldn't be doing chocolate. I've also change probiotics, so I'm not sure if the resurgence of the rash on my hand is due to that or to the chocolate. Geez! I guess I should do a scientific experiment and keep having the chocolate mock danish and see if the hand clears up??????? That would just be really too good to be true, wouldn't it?

Debbie

May be helpful -
http://www.mall-net.com/mcs/afung.html

The best food advice I've found. Summary for cheese, if you have to have it, it's a your mileage may vary kind of thing, you might need to experiment for what is right for you - however, least trouble are the lower-fat (not rock hard) cheeses, like cottage cheese, mozerella etc...(found this on another site).

Check it out.http://www.howdyneighbor.com/jbayliss/foods.htm

...and this is the BEST understandable explanation of WHAT it is. Scroll down and interesting stuff on treatments below, then go to the links/next page you'll find a reference to low carbing for it right there and other interesting things.
http://www.cfs-recovery.org/candida.htm

So low fat& softer cheeses are better, avoid hard aged cheeses (still no reason why specifically yet that I have found)...the yogurt cheese was a medium soft - nope - I'll stick to mozerella now, and cottage.

Hope some of this was helpful. N

I am getting so tired of this. I had a lunch date on Saturday and had to order a burger, "hold the bun and the condiments", and a side salad, no dressing. It was so boring and I was a tad grouchy about paying $8.00 for that! And it's only been a week!!!

I've been talking to a girl at work, and she said that it took her 10 days or so to notice her symptoms clearing up. So, I'll give it another week and then start hoping for results!!!

I have another lunch date in a couple of weeks that I am going to cancel because I'm not paying 8.00 for another dry burger patty.

Thank goodness this is a short-term condition, as long as it's not a severe case!

Talk to you soon!

Next time ask for mayo and bacon bits (most places have these) - why settle for a dry anything when you can have FAT? And if nothing else, there's always butter.

Keep the faith. We all did and we aren't sorry!

Every commcerial brand of mayo that I've seen has vinegar in it. That's okay, i can wait. I've beaten worse than this!

NSmith, do you have Candida now, or is it something that you've had and have beaten? I'm interested to know how long it took anyone to get rid of it and what the results on the rate of weight loss were.

Thanks much! I'm keeping the faith, no worries!

I had a really mild case. Took garlic, used tea tree oils, caprilic acid, biotin and cut out all cheese, vinegar, mushrooms from my lc diet. I think it's gone now, just doing maintenance. I was below my lc goal weight when I discovered I might have it - just a mild case...so my weight is unrelated. I got rid of it for health reasons, not to lose weight. Took about 2 months to feel free of it.

---- I wouldn't have recommended the mayo had I remembered this was the candida thread - but there's always butter and oils!

I'm going to experiement making some kind of whip spread with oil/eggs and sweetener/salt??? There must be something we can have!??

N

So, I'm not sure about the rest of you, but I have read that during "die-off" syptoms get worse before they get better?

I must be on the mend! I have a rash on my neck, my whole body itches at different times, I am having intense sugar-cravings, I am bloated, and I have had a couple incidents of strange looking discharge.

These better be good signs of a cured me on the horizon, and not just a worsening of the candida!

I have to be getting better, I've been soooo good!

Hope ya'll are getting better as well!

Dear Dizzy,

I know exactly how frustrated you are. I've been doing the Atkins diet now for three months and haven't lost anything. My alternative doctor put me on the diet and on several other homeopathic medicines to get rid of the yeast in my body...one is oregano oil and the other a mixture of herbs (FC Cidal). I eliminated all the same things that you are doing and I haven't had any luck losing weight, etc. I question now if it's from the mayonaise. I also have 1 or 2 cups of decaf coffee a day. I've been doing this a quartrer of a year and not even a pound My husband has been very supportive and can't believe my 'non' weight loss since he's been very successful at losing on the Atkins plan.
I guess it's good to know that we are not in this alone>

Terri

Hi! My name is Sherry I was skimming thru your journal over this candida (SP?) stuff...Very interesting...What are the obvious signs..I am on the adkins and have really slowed down in my weight loss compared to the last time I was on it?? Darn, you can find anything here! huh?? I have no rashes of any kind, but get bloated, 'food elimination' is not normal , dry mouth?? Oh, and I love my coffee!! I would hate to think of having to give this up Well, your response would be greatly appreciated!! Sherry