Candida Albicans – Systemic Candidiasis
One of the challenges that the human race faces today is the fungal infection known as Candida, also known as Systematic Candidiasis.
Systemic means “in all the body”.
Many practitioners of classical as well as natural medicine have tried to treat Candida with varying success.
In order to understand the treatment, one must understand how Candida behaves within its life cycle.
Studies have shown that 90% of newborn babies have the normal, budding Candida in the gut.
This is a unicellular cell that reproduces asexually producing a daughter cell.
It is non-pathogenic and sits in the gut without producing symptoms and belongs to the vegetable kingdom.
Like their “cousins” the moulds, they live all around you.
One large family of yeasts is Candida albicans, with over 81 different species, they live harmoniously in the mouth, throat, intestines and genito-urinary tract of most humans, and is usually considered to be a normal part of the bowel flora.
Candida Albicans is a diploid organism which has eight sets of chromosome pairs.
Candida is one of the few microorganisms that has a diploid gene controlling the same protein, this means that it is capable of pleomorphic activity,
being able to mutate from the budding form to the mycelia (fungal), pathogenic form.
The problem begins when the normal, budding candida species that we all have in our gut undergoes pleomorphic changes and begins forming mycelial or hyphae forms,
this form of Candida is pathogenic and can cause a number of symptoms.
This happens when the internal milieu of the gut and other tissues becomes more acidic, therefore killing off many of the friendly bacteria of the Acidophilus and Bifida species.
This can occur either through taking a variety of drugs such as antibiotics, cortisone, anti-inflammatories and chemotherapy used for cancer cases.
The bowel flora can also drastically reduce when the pH of the body becomes too acidic,
eating sugar and other refined products in large quantities can create this acidity.
It appears that this change in pH can trigger genes in the Candida to begin a pleomorphic change into a stealth organism that is very active, if fed with sugar, it can increase itself from 1 to 100 cells in 24 hours.
These 100 cells can then produce 100 each in the next 24 hours, and so on.
And so by the 4th day we will have 100 million Candida cells.
Most practitioners trying to treat Canidida will concentrate on killing off the pathogenic, mycelial form,
without addressing the significant question of converting this pleomorphic form back to the innocent budding form.
Another reason for the large numbers of failures by health practitioners is that the internal mileau is not addressed, and also the diet, which is crucial.
We will come back to these important points when we discuss treatment protocols.
Brief History of Candida
The history of the discovery and naming of Candida extends from the ancient Greeks to modern day researches.
200 years of medical history was recorded before the etiological agent of oral thrush, the first form of Candidiasis described, was correctly identified as a fungal pathogen.
“Thrush” appears as whitish plagues within the oropharynx or the buccal mucosa or tongue.
One of the main points of disputation when defining thrush was whether it originated from the host or was an infectious agent.
Hippocrates describes oral candidiasis (around 400 B.C.) as “mouths affected with aphthous ulcerations”.
In 1665, Pepys Diary reported “a patient hath a fever, a thrush and a hiccup”, immortalize the idea that oral thrush establish from the host.
A few clinicians and mycologist persuaded popular beliefs around the idea of an infectious agent causing thrush.
In 1771, Rosen von Rosenstein defined an invasive form of thrush.
In 1839, Langenbeck was credited with first recognizing a fungus in a patient with typhoid fever.
He describes in detail what is now referred to as septate hyphae, branched pseudohyphae and blastoconidia.
However, he recognized the entity to the typhoid bacterium rather than the fungus.
In 1844, J.H. Bennett observed a similar fungus in the sputum and the lungs of a patient with a pneumothorax and criticized the conclusion by Lagenbach.
The morphologic description of Bennett was essentially that as described by Langenbeck.
Bennett concluded that the disease was “indicative of great depression of the vital powers and impairment of the nutritive functions of the economy”.
Berg, 2 years later, overtly concluded that thrush was caused by a fungus and found that spread could occur from communal feeding bottles.
He also stated “descriptions of the disease unsupported by demonstration of the fungus could not confirm the diagnosis”.
He was able to reproduce the infection in healthy children and thereby confirmed his hypothesis that the fungus caused the infection.
While Langenbeck in 1839, first documented the fungus associated with thrush, he failed to make the direct connection.
In 1847, French mycologist, Charles Philippe Robin, classified the fungus as Oidium albicans using Albicans to name the fungus causing thrush.
Hill and later Martin and Jones misclassified Candida into the genus Monilia, a genus containing fungi that commonly grow in plants.
Clinicians referred to the etiology of thrush as “Monilias” even with the fact mycologists had already through light on the morphological differences between the fungus linked with thrush and the fungus in the genus Monilia.
Christine Berkhout and others noted these differences, particularly, the ability of this fungus to infect humans.
Berkhout reclassified it under the current genus Candida, in 1923.
Berkhout’s taxonomy was later make known by the French mycologist,
Maurice Langeron and Paul Guerra as “the beginning of the rational systematics of the non- ascosporogenous yeasts”.
Other Factors Creating Pathogenesis
The pathogenesis of disease associated with Candida in humans is driven by multitude factors.
Some strains of candida produce gliotoxin, which may impair neutrophil function.
However, candida is a polyantigenic organism containing up to 178 different antigens,
which might explain the number of cross-reactions to yeasts, moulds and even human tissue.
It was shown recently that there is a potential cross reactivity with gluten because of several amino acid sequences that are highly homologous to alpha-gliadin and gamma-gliadin.
Such a mechanism might lead to wheat intolerance with its accompanying symptoms, and even trigger Celiac disease in genetically susceptible people.
Furthermore, a placebo-controlled crossover study has revealed that dietary yeast may affect the activity of Crohn’s disease.
Candida produces alcohol and contains glycoproteins, which have the potential to stimulate mast cells to release histamine,
and apparently prostaglandin-inflammatory substances which could cause IBS-like symptoms.
Candida is sensitive to a number of antifungal agents, such as Nystatin, which is not absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract after oral administration.
It destroys Candida by binding to sterols in the cell membrane, and thereby increasing permeability with loss of cellular contents.
When other health conditions become involved, Candida becomes known as Candida-related complex (CRC).
CRC, an excess of Candida in your system can cause a host of uncomfortable signs and symptoms which are syndromes within themselves such as:
- chronic fatigue syndrome
- hypoglycaemia
- leaky gut syndrome
- fibromyalgia
- allergy or sensitivity
- hormonal
- thyroid and adrenal dysfunction
This syndrome isn’t caused by Candida itself present in our mucosal tissues that cause irritation, inflammation, itchiness,
redness and pain but by the amount of metabolites yeast colonies release inside the human colon when they exceed tolerable amounts.
Patients with CRC often have widespread symptoms affecting multiple organs systems such as:
- Gastrointestinal symptoms
- Chronic allergies
- Unexplained fatigue, always tired
- CNS fog, mood swings, depression
- Skin rashes, fungal infections
- Cravings for sugar, bread, beer
Toxicity in the colon affects the health of the whole body particularly if one’s elimination is slowed as in the case of constipation due to an imbalance in intestinal flora.
The delicate hormonal and chemical balance that orchestrates our emotional health can also be affected causing symptoms of mental illness.
Everyone can be Affected with Candida!
Anyone can be infected with Candida today!
Women can be infected because of antibiotics, steroids, anti-inflammatory medications, hormones and birth-control pills.
Men are also being infected with Candida from antibiotics, steroids, anti-inflammatory drugs, pain medications,
and sexual relations with an infected partner (even though this often results in a topical infection, not a systemic spread).
Teenagers get Candida from routine treatment with tetracycline or other antibiotics for acne.
Babies have Candida from the birth canal or breast milk of the infected mother.
That is why babies often have thrush (a white- coated tongue), which is a yeast infection.
Millions of people all over the world are infected with Candida.
It is estimated that at least one out of three people in the Western world are affected.
Because so many of our population can be infected and because so many factors can cause the condition, Candida is an enormous health problem today.
Candida coexists in our bodies with many species of bacteria in a competitive balance.
Other bacteria act in part to keep Candida growth in check in our body ecology, when health is present, the immune system keeps Candida proliferation under control,
but when the immune response is weakened, Candida growth can proceed unchecked.
It is an opportunistic organism, one which, when given the opportunity, will attempt to colonize all acidic bodily tissues,
this is one of the reasons why it is present in all tumours as they have a very acidic pH.
This uncontrolled growth of Candida is known as “Candida overgrowth” or “Candidiasis”.
Upsetting the Ecological Balance of the Body
Unfortunately, there are many factors in our modern society that can upset the ecological balance of the body, weaken the immune system and thus allow the yeast to overgrow.
The major risks factors are:
- Steroid hormones, immunosuppressant drugs such as cortisone, which treat severe allergic problems by paralyzing the immune system’s ability to react.
- Pregnancy and birth control bills which upset the body’s hormonal balance
- Diets high in carbohydrate and sugar intake, yeast and yeast products, fermented foods
- Prolonged exposure to environmental moulds
- Antibiotics and sulpha drugs – probably the chief perpetrator of all-antibiotics that kill ALL bacteria, good and bad. They do not distinguish good bacteria from bad. Antibiotics kill the “good” flora which normally keeps the candida under control. This allows for the unchecked growth of candida in the intestinal tract. It is normally difficult to recover a yeast culture from bodily surfaces.
In a variety of ways the same thing happens with the use of steroid drugs, such as cortisone.
All steroids, including the contraceptive pill, will have a depressing effect on the immune system, as well as killing off friendly bacteria in the body.
Yeast infections are common in those that take repeated or prolonged courses of amoxicillin, ampicillin, ceclor, keflex, tetracycline or other broad- spectrum antibiotics during infancy, childhood, adolescence, or since you are become an adult.
Mycotoxins
Toxic waste from mucotoxins from candida infestations can also be absorbed into the bloodstream causing “yeast toxin hypersensitivity”,
leading to many symptoms such as anxiety, depression and impaired intellectual functioning.
The main toxin implicated here is acetaldehyde, which is a normal by-product of metabolism, produced in small amounts and rendered harmless by the liver.
If however, there is excess production of this by Candida, particularly in low-oxygen environments, and a lack of the appropriate liver enzymes,
which tend to be deficient in 5% of the general population – the acetaldehyde will become bound strongly to human tissue.
This may cause impaired neuro-transmission in the brain, resulting in anxiety, depression, defective memory and cloudy thinking.
Some 40 – 60% of all immune cells in our body are in the gut.
The immune system may also concurrently be adversely affected by poor nutrition, heavy exposure to moulds in the air,
as well as an increasing number of chemicals in our food, water and air, including:
- petrochemicals
- formaldehyde
- perfumes
- cleaning fluids
- insecticides
- tobacco and other indoor and outdoor pollutants
Exclusively, yeasts tend to secrete a toxin called gliotoxin,
which can disrupt the immune system by inactivating enzyme systems and producing free radicals, thus interfering with the DNA of leukocytes.
The resulting lowered resistance may not only cause an overall sense of ill health, but may also allow for the development of respiratory, digestive and other systemic symptoms.
One may also become predisposed to developing sensitivities to foods and chemicals in the environment.
Heavy metals such as mercury and others are found in higher amounts when Candida is present,
as the Candida yeasts actually store the metals in their cells – these metals are then released when the Candida die during treatment.
This is why it is important to undergo a natural, heavy metals detox while treating Systemic Candidiasis.
Dietary factors
Sugar is the chief nutrient of Candida Albicans.
Candida Albicans thrive on all sugars, sweeteners, natural sugars in fruits and fruit juices, as well as too many complex carbohydrates.
There are several reasons to restrict or eliminate the intake of milk in patients with chronic candidiasis:
- High lactose content promotes the overgrowth of Candida
- Milk is one of the most frequent food allergens
- Milk may contain trace elements of antibiotics, which can further disrupt the gastrointestinal bacterial flora and promote Candida overgrowth
Do you have Candida? How do you know you have it?
The patient’s history and symptoms is usually the key to arriving at a diagnosis.
There are a wide variety of signs and symptoms that are prevalent in Systemic Candidiasis, being able to score these systematically provides a good, overall pictures.
Dr. Crook’s Candida questionnaire is very helpful as it enables the patient to score their symptoms and arrive at a number,
anything above 180 for women, and 140 for men is highly significant and represents the majority of symptoms that relate to the Candida.
There also other testing procedures for picking up the Candida, using the Vega biodermal screening,
a form of Bioresonance testing initially invented by Dr Voll and later adapted by Dr Schimmel.
The VRT represents an advanced development of the electroacupuncture according to Voll (EAV) concept.
It features a combination of electronic measurements of skin resistance on specific energy meridian points (acupoints),
that disclose vital health information through vegetative (autonomic) reflexes and resonances.
The VEGA device is capable of highlighting the causes of illnesses by using homoeopathic biosonodes,
this is usually a small portion of diseased tissue from a diseased organ that is ground up and made into a homoeopathic remedy.
When a particular biosonode that is placed on the honeycomb on the VEGA device induces a resonance reaction in the acupoint,
then this infers a relationship between the diseased organ being tested and the related organ of the patient.
Even bacteria, viruses, fungi, stealth organisms and more can be tested for resonance with the patient and identified much quicker than any other type of biological testing.
Another method of testing the Candida is to use a form of kinesiological muscle testing called Autonomic Response Testing (ART),
invented by a German neurologist Dr. Dietrich Klinghardt, M.D. Ph.D. ART grew out of the importance of detecting and correct problems of the autonomic nervous system (ANS).
ART allows the practitioner to correct the problems of the ANS and to help restore the self regulating mechanism of the body allowing the patient to return to a state of health.
To date, there is no conclusive blood or clinical test for diagnosing pathogenic Systemic Candidiasis.
In time to come there will probably be genetic tests that can determine the genomone of the mycelial, pathogenic Candida.
Let us now examine the concept of treatment which is quite complex if one really wants to succeed.
There are numerous approaches to treating Candida which are used by medical doctors,
using medicinal anti-fungals, to naturopaths and nutritionists using a variety of natural products to kill off the Candida.
All these treatments are rampant with problems that end up in the patient feeling better initially, only to find that the Candida “creeps back” again after a few months.
I have been using a treatment protocol for years called ”Da Vinci Candida Treatment protocol” with a huge success!
Read also: Food Intolerances – Causes of inflammation?
