Carbohydrates

[weezerboy]

Hi! I was wondering - do we have to limit our daily carbohydrates when on the anti-candida diet? I did a search on this board and there seems to be no mention of it in this forum. Thanks.

[shelley]

Good question.

Most people use the term carbohydrates incorrectly when they talk about the candida diet. They consider all carbs bad and yeast food, which is simply not the case. Yeast is somewhat particular about what they like, and that can include proteins! Anything that can rot, spoil and mold can feed yeast, ultimately, so it's impossible to not ever eat anything that feeds it.

Yes, simple and refined sugars must must must be taken out of your diet for at least 1-3 months. After that, try to stick to small amounts of complex sweeteners like molasses and brown rice syrup.

High-starch foods are suspect, some people do okay with them (I did great with sweet potatoes) some people do not. Starches are very complex carbs and not easy for yeast to eat, but some of the sugars do get trapped in the fiber and make it to the colon where the yeasties go to town.

But carbs in general, such as rice, alternative grains and alternative grain pasta, are fine so long as you prepare them right and only eat small amounts. What everyone fails to do because their candida diet guidelines are incomplete, is to prepare such carbs in the way that yeasties don't like. So the Vital Health way of managing candida says to cook them thoroughly with spices, use plenty of Pungent Therapy, follow the guidelines for digestive power, take enzymes and things to increase stomach acid, and then you can enjoy carbs no problem.

[michael515]

Hello,

I've been researching for at least 1 year about candida and read most of the posts on your website. My question is this...

Regarding complex carbs vs. simple carbs and candida... Why is it that simple and refined carbs are to be avoided but complex carbs are okay and don't feed candida yeast? Isn't it correct that complex carbohydrates break down into simple carbs anyway and otherwise the body cannot use the sugars?

Foods must be digested quickly - which is what a simple sugar does, a complex carb does not. If I sprinkle enzymes into my bowl of rice does it not break down into a simple sugar? But simple sugars are not allowed...

From my research, and please correct me if I'm wrong, the only reason we with severe candida can handle ANY kind of carbohydrate lies in the preparation or what the carbs are eaten with because sugars are most often eaten alone and have nothing to protect it from the yeast attack. However, by eating rice for example with lots of cinnamon and coconut oil you'd also be getting anti-candida yeast fighters to offset the onslaught of carbs that will feed the candida. In a sense, it would keep the yeasties "in check".

Could it be that eating a bowl of plain white basmati rice with nothing else would be no better off that eating sugar unless I prepared it with anti-candida spices and oils?

Too many carbs in general make candida worse and in limiting carbs we should try to consume the most nutritious complex carbs that aren't stripped of the vitamins liked refined carbs or simple sugars.

Please post any comments because I cannot seem to find the answer as to whether or not I'm correct. It's just that in all my research, complex carbs always must get broken down into simple carbs before we can ever use them. With that being true, a carb is a carb and I cannot see how candida yeast can tell the difference.

My question is does the trick to being able to consume complex carbs lie mostly in the preparation because, if made correctly, what's it's consumed with will act to block the candida yeast from attacking the sugars?

[shelley]

Get some yeast for baking and watch it culture once with sugar and once with starches and see the difference. Leave raw and cooked versions of each out or warmed up and watch them mold, note how long it takes and compare that with the length of time of digestion/absorption.

[shelley]

I haven't yet found a good metaphor to explain what goes on, and the factors are complicated. You also have to take into consideration the effect of pH (simple sugars and starches change pH differently), the presence of other micro-organisms, and how they interact with water and oxygen (carbs bind water and this inhibits candida, candida can be anaerobic or not...).

It's important to keep in mind that just because there is food and digestion it doesn't follow that there has to be fermentation (increase of candida). If the enzymes get to the complex carbs first, candida has nothing to eat.

It's also important to note that there are 2 kinds of candida structures. Their original single-celled state, like the bread yeast, is fine and necessary, we need them. It's the rhizomes (stalk-like) that are virulent and destructive. They each "eat" differently.

Yes, preparing foods with spices is key. It decreases transit time so that fermentation is less likely, and makes the foods very unpalatable to candida because of their anti-fungal, anti-bacterial properties.

Does that help?

[beachbuminthecountry]

What a great topic. So, can I have homemade wild fermented sourdough bread (no store bought yeast just wild yeast) and what about quinoa. I could have these in small amounts and with antifungal things added.

[shelley]

Yep. The only real concern with bread is how sensitive you are to wheat. Since the average person eats tons of wheat, it's best to take a break while on the candida diet. But if you are sure you don't have celiac disease and dont' react to bread, then sourdough is a great choice.

Quinoa is fantastic, can't recommend it highly enough. It won't fill you for very long unless you add fats, but it's great energy food, tasty, versatile...you don't have to add a lot of spices either.

[obarrera]

Is all Quinoa bread ok to eat?
For example, if I go to trader joes, I can just buy any kind of quinoa bread, or do I have to look for gluten free quinoa bread or something like that?

Also, I seem to break out when I eat potatoes, do you think that if I change to sweet potatoes I have less chance of breaking out?

Thanks!

[shelley]

You have to read the label. Some breads are a combo of more than one grain.

[obarrera]

[shelley]

most candida/leaky gut people should avoid all gluten grains for at least the first month and be careful about re-introducing them into their diet. Google for a complete list.

[beachbuminthecountry]

This may be a question asked before so I am sorry ahead of time. What does the gluten do to the candida/leaky gut people.

[shelley]

Leaky gut people often have what's called Celiac Disease, altho they can have it temporarily and many Celiac Disease people have it all their lives, unfortunately. When you have Celiac Disease the gluten proteins are way too tough to digest and wreak havoc with the intestine's protective coating of mucus and irritate the intestines, which can then get inflamed and even infected. This continues the cycle of gut permeability and immune response that exhausts the immune system and clogs up every system as the larger proteins make it into the bloodstream.

[J F]

I didn't register in a blood test as allergic to wheat, but I do avoid gluten grains because of the way they mess up my digestion and leave me feeling inflammatory. I have no problems with fresh baked/no yeast sourdough a couple times per week, or a good french bread with lots of butter. I even occaisionally eat a big pancake breakfast with no worries. What my body doesn't like are daily doses of grains, heat producing starches, so I find I have little use for white rice, pasta, potatoes, whole grain breads. I don't even like the taste.

That said, I like an occaisional bowl of oatmeal. Also, I love making brown rice with sea salt, thyme and coconut oil added before eating. Quinoa done this way is also great. If I have that with a side of broiled garlic asparagus and a small portion of meat, that's a satisfying meal that makes me feel good. The asparagus and garlic have lots of sulfur (anti-inflammatory) and the garlic is particularly efficient against candida. If I eat like this regularly, my visible candida symptoms virtually disappear within days.

For those worried about getting enough fiber in their diets without the aid of grains, I do lots of veggie juicing, and throw some of the discarded pulp back into the glass of finished juice if I think I need it. Veggie juice and high fiber fruits like blueberries and avocado do wonders for keeping my bowels running at top speed......er, efficiency.

[shelley]

That's pretty much what I do - enjoy French bread occasionally, sourdough being my first choice. Bread is a twice a week thing, not a habit. Luckily I do fine with rice, it's part of my genetic heritage!

Blueberries are such great fiber, and avocados help keep me feeling full and sated when I have a light salad, plus the vitamin E balance out my phos/cal ratios as E antagonizes phosphorus. Adding avocado to a meat-rich sandwich or taco is not only a great flavor enhancer, it's also a great way to balance all of the nutrients in the meal.