You may have heard the term “candida overgrowth” popping up here and there… but what even is it?
Turns out, this fancy term simply means a yeast overgrowth, but don’t panic, it’s pretty common. Dietitian and gut expert Dr Kerith Duncanson explains, “Candida lives in the gut and on the skin and mucous membranes of healthy people without causing any issues.” In fact, candida is always present in the body, but it’s when it multiplies (due to antibiotics or a high sugar diet) that it can start to cause concern.
If the overgrowth occurs in your intestinal tract it can seriously mess with your gut bacteria, as well as affect digestion and the absorption of precious nutrients.
These five foods can foster candida, so whether you’re trying to heal your gut, or just prevent the possibility of an overgrowth, keep these culprits at bay…
1. Sugar.
You might notice a running theme here… but candida essentially feeds off sugar, and it needs it to survive and thrive. So it’s no surprise that step one in tackling an overgrowth is to cut down your sugar intake. But, having a candida overgrowth in your gut can actually make you crave sugar too as it tries to feed, so make sure you stick to your guns and don’t let the candida take over!
2. Agave.
We’ve previously mentioned that some sugar substitutes contain more fructose than sugar itself. While table sugar (sucrose) is 50 per cent fructose and 50 per cent glucose, agave is 90 per cent fructose – so basically, it’s just condensed sweet stuff which will continue to feed candida cells.
3. Fruit.
If you know us well, you’ll know we enjoy up to two pieces of low-fructose whole fruit a day. While high fructose fruit can add to the sugar in your gut and in turn, feed candida, low-fructose fruit is a-okay. But, what does low-fructose fruit mean? We’ve put together a fruit pyramid to help you gauge which fruit are good to go, and which should be avoided…
4. Juice.
Ah, juice you sneaky thing. Juice essentially condenses the sugar from fruit and gets rid of all the fibre, so you could end up drinking up to eight teaspoons of sugar in one hit! One study even found that freshly squeezed fruit juices often contain multiple strains of candida too! If that’s not enough to get you to ditch the juice, we’re not sure what will – try reaching for a refreshing smoothie instead!
5. Artificial sweeteners.
While artificial sweeteners aren’t sugar, they’re still not too flash for your gut health. In fact, our nutritionist, Liv, says, “While you may be happy with their low-calorie level on the label, artificial sweeteners go straight to the gut and will feed certain strains of bacteria. This causes digestive issues (no thanks!), allowing the bad bacteria to multiply, throwing off bacterial balance. Additionally, bacteria may actually use these sweeteners and convert them to sugar or fat anyway.” In order to create the best environment for good bacteria to flourish and kick back against possible candida, it’s recommended to keep even these fake sugars down.
If you want to protect your gut from candida, you’re in the right place. Check out our 8-Week Program for step-by-step help on how to cut the sweet stuff. Your gut will thank you for it!
If you’re concerned about candida, please consult your healthcare professional.
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