Cough, cough, cough

After coughing continuously for the last week and a half (Christmas was a total wash-out), I've given in: I'm taking Pholcodine. Which, of course, is full of sugar and alcohol. Frustrating, especially as I have managed to maintain the Candida diet all through the festive period, with not one slip-up. Not even a tiny piece of Turkish Delight has passed my lips. Still, what can you do in these circumstances? I cough all night, every night, not just keeping myself awake, but everyone else in the house too. I am exhausted and have managed to pull a muscle in my side. Feel like I've been beaten all about with a lump of two-by-four.

Pholcodine it is then. I'm trying my Mum's tip: 5ml dose in a cup of hot water, three times a day. Here's hoping it works. I do not want to end up how I was this time last year: steriods, two courses of antibiotics and a chest x-ray. For four months I coughed. FOUR flipping months - Christmas right through to Easter!

In better news - the anti-fungals (Nizoral) I was prescribed a few weeks ago seem to have done the trick, at least for now. Hallelujah.

Update

So.... the doctor prescribed me Canestan cream and a tablet. Like a good girl I took/used them. I dunno what happened, but they must have released all the dormant yeasty-beasties in my system from their slumber; I have ended up with probably the worst thrushy flare-up in years. Scuse me while I screeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaammmmmmmmmmmmm in frustration!

Anyway, back at the doctor's today, during an MOT of my lady bits, I explained the frankly piss-poor treatment I had received from the conventional medical profession in the past. She was really shocked, especially about me being told by a gynaecologist at a hospital which shall remain nameless that I was unlucky and would just have to deal with it (I swear I'd been marked down as 'neurotic'). She revealed that there are LOADS of other treatments to try (besides endless and useless Nystatin pessaries). For starters, she's put me on a course of a fairly heavy-duty anti-fungal treatment (taken orally). I start tomorrow. Here's hoping.

But, just because I have had to resort to medication, I don't intend to stop eating well. The Candida Diet is simply a healthy way to eat (providing it isn't taken to extremes), and I have renewed determination to get back on the straight and narrow, and keep it up.

Kicking thrushy butt

Long time, no hear (from me). I thought I had kicked thrushy butt, but recent events have conspired to reveal that, oh no, the Candida is still there wreaking its evil, yeasty ways in my nether regions.

So, while I'm waiting to find out what my surgery/local hospital indeed to do about it, I've returned to Angela Kilmartin's advice:

• avoid 'sweaty' clothing - though this does mean that I might have to give up running, which will be a real shame;
• tighten up the diet - not a lot, but, clearly, too much refined sugar has been passing my lips recently;
• shower, don't bath;
• three soup spoonfuls of yoghurt before every meal (yuck); and
• a tsp of olive oil per day (also yuck).

I should also get my hands on some caprylic acid tablets too. Oh joy.

The moral of this story is stay vigiliant against the thrushy battalions, cowered, but not beaten, ready to attack at the slightest opportunity.

Bastards.

Much overdue update

Just popping in to say that I am still maintaining, though I'm able to tolerate the odd bit of refined sugar now and then (so, I no longer have to miss out on birthday cake, etc). My digestive system seems to be considerably more robust: I managed to survive two hefty courses of antibiotics between December and March without ill-effect. Brilliant news.

My thesis is also finished - I should graduate this July - so my stress-levels are much reduced. My skin is virtually clear of acne. I'm running two-three times a week and I feel great! So, stick with the candida diet. It *is* tough, and you may only take baby-steps in the right direction to begin with, but progress is still progress.

New Blog: Rabbit Hole Wonderland

Just come across a great little candida (amongst other medical complaints) blog, Rabbit Hole Wonderland. Some delicious-sounding recipes with an East Asian twist. Really keen to try some of them out. Not sure where I'll get me some minced bison in Leicester though. ;)

I want Marmite!

Apologies for the lack of promised recipes; have been mega-busy recently (conferences, writing, etc) and now I've got a filthy cold and hacking cough - oh joy! Just taking a few mins out to see if I can garner any thoughts from you, dear readers, about Candida and Marmite.

When I was little, the fail-save cure for all that ails you in the Djinn household was Marmite on toast, with a nice cup of tea. And, of course, that's just what I'm craving now. As I've previously described, I'm relaxing the diet, so might a spot of Marmite on sourdough toast be okay? After all, it is extracted from an entirely different yeast from Candida albicans, and is packed with B vitamins, which - given the hideous PMT I've been suffering from recently - I clearly need. And sugar is really my problem, right?

Dammit! I'm going to do it. I'm going out and buying a (small) pot of Marmite - hurrah!

Check out the Marmite website, and in particular, the 'hate it' sandwich suggestions. Genius!

New (to me) cookery book and great recipe

On the look out for another recipe book full of healthy, easily adaptable recipes, I bought the Readers' Digest Food For Your Body at a second hand bookshop last week. It's full of lovely, simple recipes, most of which are candida diet okay (with the odd substitute).

What most attracted me was the section on mood food and, last night, I made one of the recipes suggested to restore a sense of calm (which I'm sorely missing at the moment!), Pan-fried Salmon with Pineapple Salsa (p. 275). I won't reproduce the recipe here, but suffice to say it was easy to follow and worked out really well. I substituted the maple syrup/honey for a tsp of granulated xylitol, with no obvious disadvantage. All in all a very tasty recipe, and one I will be making again.

I'm desperate to try out the Lemon Polenta Cake recipe on page 129, but I fear I won't be able to get polenta at my local Co-op. :( Will have to wait until I've got a chance to go into town again next week.

Vegetable Bouillon

Just a quick note about Marigold Swiss Vegetable Bouillon (Reduced Salt). It's completely Candida diet friendly, suitable for vegans, and has less salt than the Kallo Yeast-free stock cubes. And a much more pleasant taste - very herby, and curry-powder free! Look for the purple tub!

Anxiety and Candida

Of course, I'd forgotten all about the link between candida overgrowth and mental well being. So, while I said the other day that I'd managed to go 'off-diet' for a couple of weeks without any major problems, the increased levels of anxiety and general miserable-ness which coincided with me eating masses of sugar and cheese and crap are likely to be connected. Especially as I've noticed that since I went back on the diet, my mood has slowly improved. Just another reason why its imperative that I don't slip back into old ways. And drink plenty of water. And remember to take all those damn supplements! ;)

Update and EFT

I haven't posted anything here for a long time for several reasons.

i) my candida symptoms continue to improve steadily;

ii) it's been Christmas (obviously) and my nutritional therapist gave me the festive season off (which was great AND didn't provoke too nasty a reaction); and

iii) some of the emotional difficulties I had been dealing with over the summer have resurfaced, and have preoccupied my mind.

However, I did want to sign in briefly to write about my new discovery, EFT (aka 'tapping') and ponder how it might be utilised to combat candida.

For those that aren't in the know (like me until just over twenty-four hours ago!) Emotional Freedom Technique is a kind of acupressure-cum-hypno therapy developed in the 1990s by Gary Craig. You can find out loads more about the technique (which involves tapping a series of points on the body) on his website, including a comprehensive and completely free to download 'how to' manual. The idea is that when we experience something disturbing or distressing, or become ill, etc., our energy fields are disrupted. EFT works by fixing these blockages, helping to ease painful memories, or - indeed - physical pain.

I've been trying it to help with my anxiety symptoms. It's very easy to do when you know how, and doesn't take a lot of time. And, if my experience so far is anything to go by, it really is effective. I don't know how and I don't know why, but my God it works! And that's all I care about.

So, could it be used to combat candida symptoms? Well - to paraphrase Gary Craig himself - I'm prepared to try it (EFT) on anything. And a case study I've found suggests it could be effective. Could be the difference between managing my symptoms and eradicating them for good? Will post an update if (when!) I have anything further to report...

New Candida Blog

Just spotted: Katie Beats Candida

Lunapads

I've decided to take the plunge and try out Lunapads - washable sanitary towels. For a couple of years I've been using Natracare products which don't irritate my candida condition as much as commercial pads (a couple of hours of wearing one of those things and I'm left with a full blown flare-up), but - especially in the summer - they can still be a little uncomfortable.

Lunapads are constructed from cotton and cotton fleece, and can be washed with the rest of the laundry on a normal cycle (after a quick soak). I've done a bit of Internet research and apparently they last at least three years (and often longer) and don't even stain too badly. The initial outlay is a bit steep but, as they are reusable, they should pay for themselves after a few months. They will also solve the occasional problem I have getting hold of Natracare pads, which can be a bit of a hassle to say the least.

The Lunapads website (the company is Canadian) recommends three Internet-based retailers in the UK. I've plumped for the Natural Woman website. I've decided, initially, to order just a couple of the maxi pads with liners, so that I can try them out before making a major investment! The pads cost £17.14, p&p £1.70 and V.A.T. £1.16. A grand total of £20. I really hope I'm not making an expensive mistake! I will report back when I've had an opportunity to try 'em out. ;)

Update and Book review: Cooking Without by Barbara Cousins

First things first. As I'm sure my regular readers must have noticed, I have been absent for several weeks. To cut a long story short, I haven't been very well recently (completely non Candida related!) and had to come home for some much needed R&R. Blogging hasn't been my top priority. And apart from anything else, I have - as a result of leaving Leicester - lost my super-fast broadband connection, to be replaced by an antiquated dial-up modem thingy. It's frustratingly slow. However, that doesn't mean that 'developments' on the Candida front haven't occurred.

I am now on new medication. In fact, the medication I was so concerned about taking before. For the first couple of weeks I really did struggle with the side-effects, which included nausea, complete loss of appetite, aches & pains and feelings of unreality, but since then I've felt increasingly great. And now I'm a super happy bunny - or at least I would be if it would stop raining for five seconds. But, here, we're not interested in that. We're bothered with Candida...

Surprisingly my thrush symptoms have all but disappeared. To reiterate, the symptoms I've had for the past THIRTEEN YEARS have disappeared. The constant itching and soreness - GONE (providing I make sure I drink plenty of fluid)! Ever since I started on the SSRI! Was my Candida problem simply an allergic reaction to stress hormones? I'm starting to think 'yes'. Since I started popping the happy pills I have been able to relax as I haven't been able to relax since, well, I don't know when. The low-level, generalised anxiety has gone. I've turned from a 'glass half empty' to a 'glass half full' kind of girl. IT'S A BLOODY MIRACLE!!! ;)

Oh, and did I mention that I haven't been taking my (extortionately priced) supplements (apart from the multivit and iron)? NO ANTI-FUNGALS at all! It's only been a month, so I'm not going to count my chickens quite yet. But, really, I have made SO much progress over the past month I'm delighted regardless. There's light at the end of that there tunnel. :)

Okay, now onto the main business of this post. The review (or more precisely a brief report) of Barbara Cousin's Cooking Without: Recipes free from added gluten, sugar, dairy products, yeast, salt, saturated fat. Eagle-eyed and sharp of mind regular readers might remember that I reviewed Barbara's similarly titled recipe book on vegetarian cooking 'without' last summer. I was pretty impressed with that (though I had a bit of trouble with some of the recipes), but this meat-friendly collection of recipes is even better. Especially the baking section. So far I've tried the Chewy Fruit Bars (p. 225) - which benefited from 10 mins in the oven - and the Apple, Date and Nut Muffins (p. 216) - which I had with apple juice-sweetened dried cranberries instead of the dates and raisins. Both delicious (relatively speaking!). Keen to make a start on working through the savoury recipes when I get back to student life.

Newish blog: Fighting Candida: Body Ecology

Found another new Candida diet blog this evening - Fighting Candida: Body Ecology. There's a nice little - growing - community of Candida fighters out there in the blogosphere. ;) Hurrah!

Soup

As I type I'm trying out the tin of Suma Carrot & Coriander Soup I picked up at Waitrose yesterday. It's not bad; well seasoned, fairly spicy. Not as good as my own of course, but takes considerably less time to prepare!

It was, however, the only soup in their range available at that particular supermarket, that didn't contain any prohibited ingredients (I'm assuming corn syrup is a bad thing). Still, it is encouraging to note the increasing range and availability of Candida diet friendly products in British supermarkets. Food shopping is certainly much easier now, than when I started the diet in December 2004.

Waitrose - woo hoo!

Waitrose is the place to go for candida-friendly food! Stopped at the Bury St Edmunds branch on my way back to Leicester this lunchtime. Picked up masses of good stuff which I'll blog over the coming week or so. To begin with, I had their ready-prepared Chicken Jalfrezi tonight (really good; spicy, but not too hot) with frozen, but microwavable brown rice (six sachets - generous one person portion) per bag. Waitrose is my new favourite supermarket. Shame there isn't a store round here.

Book Review: 'Healing Foods: A Practical Guide to Key Foods for Good Health' by Miriam Polunin

I found a copy of Miriam Polunin's 'Healing Foods' in my local Oxfam for £1.99 the other day. It's packed with great advice on the nutritional and health benefits of different types of food and includes some fantastic healthy recipes designed to support the body and counteract the effects of a range of conditions (inc. candida overgrowth). Recently I've made Carrot and Corinader soup (good for heart health and the body's defences, apparently) (p. 100) and Dhal (which helps to protect against respiratory infections, anaemia and support circulation, heart and diabetic health) (p. 127). Both recipes were easy to follow and the results were very tasty. Looking forward to having a second helping of carrot and coriander soup for my lunch shortly!

Mother Hemp Red Pesto

Another of my finds at Tescos was 'Motherhemp' Red Pesto. It's fairly strong and flavoursome, so you only need a little bit to liven up pasta. For dinner this evening, I had it with oven-roasted vegetables (red pepper, courgettes, onion and aubergine) on Orgran Tricolour corn pasta, topped with crumbled feta for protein.

Here's a pic (from the Motherhemp website).

There was also green pesto version, but I believe that included Parmesan in the ingredient. Shame :(

Bty, the oils in hemp seed are supposed to be good for inflammatory skin conditions. And I'm sure we're all familiar with the sort of nasty inflammatory skin conditions Candida overgrowth can cause!

'Toxic Diets' fuel child obesity

Interesting report on BBC Online this morning. The comment that a high-sugar, low-fibre diet may cause hormonal imbalances struck me; I've always thought there was a hormonal aspect to my Candida-related problems. And I certainly did used to have a high-sugar, low-fibre diet!

Anti-candida Diet: The basics

There is loads of information out there about candida and the anti-candida diet, so I'm not going to reproduce it here. If you think you have a problem with candida ('thrush', 'yeast'), then you MUST seek advice from a medical practitioner to confirm a diagnosis. I would also recommend finding a nutritional therapist to offer advice and support.

My own symptoms have responded well to the anti-candida diet and I am now in the process of reintroducing some foods into my diet, but for those just starting out (or what to find out more), here's the basics (N.B. 'bad' and 'good' foods may vary depending on who you talk to):

Eliminate:

• all refined sugars;
• dairy products (except yoghurt, 'young' cheeses, like cottage cheese - sheep and goats' milk/cheese has lower levels of lactose than cows' milk/cheese, so - if you can tolerate it - you may be able to use it as a substitute);
• yeast and yeast products (i.e. marmite);
• fermented products, e.g. vinegar ('though I can tolerate a small amount of cider vinegar), soy sauce and miso paste ('though these are now back in my diet);

- and avoid caffeine (I drink green and herbal/fruit teas) and red meat (I'm virtually meat-free these days).

Eat plenty of:

• fresh vegetables and some fruits (most practitioners will suggest you eliminate all fruit except apples (maybe pears) at the start of your diet);
• ginger and garlic (both have anti-fungal properties);
• yoghurt; and
• wholewheat grains.

This all sounds very scary at first, but there are plenty of really tasty things you can eat, which will be the subject of my next posting.