65 HEALTH JT 10 April 2014

P
ESACH IS a time when we do not eat
chometz. Most people commonly complain
of increased constipation during Pesach, but
for a select few out there they are astonished
that their stomach has never felt better. They say they
have less bloating and gas, and less pain. They also tend
to describe feeling as though they have more energy and
much less joint pain or headaches. I have often wondered
why this is the case.
The answer to this question may be due to the fact that
their diets are pretty much yeast free and a yeast-free diet
is one component of what is called a Candida Cleanse.
The Candida Albicans yeast is a part of our normal gut
ora, a group of microorganisms that live in your mouth
and intestine. When the amount of Candida Albicans gets
too high in our bodies we tend to experience stomach
problems such as bloating and gas. As well, we can
experience symptoms such as fatigue, headaches, weight
gain and joint pain. In this Pesach special feature I would
like to investigate the health benets of yeast-free diets and
how it relates to Candida overgrowth.
Why does Candida get out of hand?
Almost everyone has Candida Albicans in their gut,
and a signicant proportion of us may have Candidiasis,
or an overgrowth of Candida. Candida Albicans starts to
cause trouble when there is some change in your body
that allows it to overgrow. This change could be anything
from a few courses of antibiotics or a prolonged diet rich
in carbohydrates and sugar. (Anyone who has ever made
challah certainly knows how sugar immediately causes
yeast to growth and become active!)
Whats the problem with having too much Candida?
So why is Candida a bad thing? Ordinarily it isnt the
Candida Albicans population is kept under control by
the friendly bacteria in our gut. However, when your
immune system is down or you have taken too many
antibiotics, Candida starts to multiply and can quickly
take over.
The overgrowth of Candida Albicans produces
toxins that your body has problems coping with. The
wide-ranging side effects of this battle may range
from headaches and fatigue to abdominal pain and
depression. The theory is that the problem stems from
the metabolic byproduct of Candida called acetaldehyde,
which happens to be toxic to humans at high levels. It is
what causes the hangover symptoms one might get from
drinking too much alcohol.
The occurrence of Candidiasis has actually been
increasing rapidly over the last few decades. Our modern
diet of processed food and sweets is partly to blame, but
also the increased prevalence of obesity and diabetes,
plus the much more frequent use of antibiotics.
Symptoms common with Candida Overgrowth
Hypoglycemia: Because Candida yeast is in our guts
a n d
eats the sugar we ingest, we
actual get less of it when we eat it! Then we will crave it,
and in a vicious cycle, we need to eat a lot more sugar.
Then our pancreas works harder than normal to produces
insulin, sugar rushes out of the bloodstream and into the
cells, and then nally our blood sugar crashes. We then
might feel shaky, irritable and have headaches!
Brain fog: As mentioned a byproduct of its
sugar metabolism Candida produces acetaldehyde
the same toxic byproduct your liver produces when
processing alcohol. So
effectively, Candida
can make you feel a
little bit drunk! People
usually describe it as
poor memory, fuzzy
thinking, or poor word
recall. Acetaldehyde
can also lead to
headaches.
Gas and bloating:
Candida ferments the
sugar you eat, and one
of the byproducts of
fermentation is carbon
dioxide. Great in
your lungs, but pretty
unpleasant in your gut.
Itching: Patients
usually have some kind
of skin irritation when
they have too much
Candida, but occasionally a patient will describe itching
at some other body orice, such as the ears or throat.
Food sensitivities. Candida byproducts irritate the
gut lining, and over time this can cause inammation.
If the inammation is severe enough, it can lead to
food molecules prematurely coming in contact with
the bloodstream, and this can trick your body into
thinking the food is a foreign invader. Then you
end up becoming sensitive to a lot of foods you love
eating!
The Candida Cleanse in a nutshell:
So how do you lower your Candida levels? I
have a particular protocol I designed which is
about seven pages in length and refers precisely
to what a person can and can not eat and exactly
what to do but for brevity in this article this is
the basic concept:
1. Cut out all rened sugars, rened
carbohydrates and fruit sugars (all of which
Candida likes to eat and grow from)
2. Cut out yeast, fungi and fermented foods
(like vinegars and alcohol)
3. Kill the Candida: There are some excellent
over-the-counter natural antifungal products.
Garlic is one of the most potent of all.
4. Repopulate the gut with
a probiotic. Bacteria like
bidobacillus and
lactobacillus are generally
used. The increase of
good bacteria will crowd out
the Candida.
Other benets of a yeast-
free diet
Obviously a decrease in
eating sugar leads to eating
more vegetables and bre
to replace the processed
food you used to be eating.
T h i s
will help regulate your blood sugar. Eventually, this
will lead to a more constant level of energy. Eventually
one will lose weight. The higher level of bre you will
likely get in your diet will improve the efciency of the
digestive tract.
Are there side effects to the yeast -free diet?
Many people who have decreased or eliminated yeast
report feeling healthier and more energetic in about
three to six weeks. It is important to note that a sudden
drop in yeast and sugar in the diet could make one feel
very sick for up to one week;
this result is generally
considered normal but is
not really that fun. It is
called a Candida die-off
reaction. As the yeast dies
off from the lack of sugar it
tends to release toxins as it
dies. A good way to avoid
this is to make sure you
are eating enough food
throughout the day and
drinking plenty of water to
ush the toxins out of your
system. Also eating ground
ax seeds (due to the bre
content) can help to bind
up some of the toxins. 1-
2 tsp of freshly ground
ax seeds in a large cup of
water a day will denitely
help improve the situation.
The bottom line:
Many sufferers of Candidiasis remain undiagnosed
by their doctors and unaware of their condition.
Unfortunately, many doctors dont recognize the
systemic problems that Candidiasis causes. They only
treat the symptoms when it appears to be an obvious
infection like thrush. Some healthcare professionals
dont believe in systemic Candida infections, so you
need to nd a doctor with an open mind, or see a
naturopath like myself, a homeopathic doctor or
another holistic practitioner. Try to see if you are one
of the few people that feel better from the yeast-free
Pesach diet this year. If you do see a decrease in your
symptoms and more energy you might want to look into
doing a full Candida Cleanse! Feel free to contact my
ofce for a Candida Cleanse Consultation. I would be
happy to share my Advanced Candida Cleanse Protocol
with you and help you kill the yeast once and for all!
Have a kosher, happy and
h e a l t h y Pesach!
The health benefits of a
yeast-free diet
Dr Anders Nerman ND
PART 1
T h e
author is a
Naturopathic Doctor
with an Integrative Family Medical
practice in Wolfson Medical Center in
Jerusalem, Israel. For more call 00972-54-427-8667
or email drnermansofce@gmail.com.
Information is provided for informational purposes only
and is not intended as a substitute for the advice provided by
your physician or other healthcare professional. Always speak with
your physician or other healthcare professional before taking any
medication or nutritional, herbal or homeopathic supplement, or
adopting any treatment for a health problem.