Before I explain one of the studies about candida and IBD I want to give you a little background on candida or yeast or another name is fungus. I want to tell you what it is, why its so bad, and what makes it overgrow.

According to Ann Boroch author of The Candida Cure, “Candida Albicans is a harmless yeast, a type of fungus, that lives naturally in everyone’s body…in a healthy body, it lives symbiotically in a balanced environment in the gastrointestinal tract, on the mucous membranes, and on the skin.” Pg. 4 The problem is that what is supposed to be harmless can overgrow and turn into a pathogen.

There are two forms of candida, yeast which is like a seed form and mycelial form which is a seed that has grown tentacles. The yeast is small in the form of seeds while the chronic form has grown tentacles that dig themselves deep into the gut of whatever part of the body they reside. Some people call it a seven-headed dragon because it becomes impossible to kill. Candida facts, What is candida?, retrieved from http://owndoc.com/candida-albicans/candida-facts/, August 14, 2014.

When the candida grow into its mycelial form it burrows into the intestinal lining with its roots called rhizoids creating leaky gut. Physician Heal Thyself, Jordan Rubin, pg. 186 This allows not only the fungus and its byproducts called mycotoxins to seep through but also undigested food, bacteria, and other pathogens. If your immune system is compromised candida can have a field day. we are bombarded with many different pathogens, viruses, bacteria, and other things in our daily life that can make us sick; according to an article in Science magazine, “Candida albicans is the most common human systemic pathogen, causing both mucosal and systemic infections, particularly in immunocompromised people.” The Candida Cure, Ann Boroch, pg. 5. This is probably the reason Jessica’s doctor told us, “We need to kill the yeast.” Jessica’s levels were extremely high.

Candida put out at least 79 toxic by-products.10 These are neurotoxins that destroy and decompose tissues and organs. You can see why they would greatly contribute to leaky gut. These toxins disrupt RNA and DNA synthesis, damage and destroy neurons, are carcinogenic, and cause ataxia (lack of coordination) and even convulsions. The Candida Cure, Ann Boroch, pg. 8

One of the root causes of candida can be a damaged liver. I had concerns about Jessica’s ability to detox when she was young because my genetic test showed I was not a good detoxer of coffee. Jordan Rubin in his book Physician Heal Thyself says, “When the liver is even slightly damaged by a toxic chemical, immune function is severely compromised. Liver injury is also linked to candida overgrowth, as evident in studies of mice demonstrating that when the liver is even slightly damaged, candida runs rampant through the body.” Physician Heal Thyself, Jordan Rubin, pg. 189

The major causes of candida albicans overgrowth are antibiotics, steroids, birth control pills, estrogen replacement therapy, poor diet, chemotherapy, radiation, heavy metals, alcohol overuse, recreational drugs, and stress…yeast also thrives in the presence of refined sugar, refined carbs, dairy products, alcohol, processed foods, and hormones secreted as a result of high stress levels. Pg. 5 Candida Cure by Ann Boroch

If you have candida at all it means that your immune system has been weakened and is tolerating excess candida. It is interesting to me the wording that Dr. Orion Truss in his book The Missing Diagnosis, uses to describe the immune system and candida, “The very existence of Candida albicans in the tissues on a chronic basis reveals an immune system at least partially ‘paralyzed’ and ‘unresponsive’ to its antigens—an immune system that is ‘tolerating’ the continued presence in the tissues of this ‘foreign’ invader.” The missing diagnosis by C. Orian Truss, M.D., pg. 25 26

A statement from a research study entitled Inflammation and gastrointestinal Candida colonization says, “Recent studies, however, show that high level Candida colonization is associated with several diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.” The summary basically says that Candida can delay healing inflammation and inflammation promotes candida colonization. It’s a vicious cycle. “Both inflammatory bowel disease and gastrointestinal Candida colonization are associated with elevated levels of pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-17.” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3163673/

We also know from studies and works by Dr. Sarah Ballytine that a leaky gut precedes autoimmune disease. This gets complicated and I can see why doctors disagree as to what is the true cause of my daughter Jessica gets sick so often and easily. If we kill the yeast maybe the inflammation will go down and we can see if this really is true IBD. But if the inflammation doesn’t go down it could keep the excess yeast alive contributing to leaky gut and then IBD an autoimmune disease. It’s really so hard to tell. We will keep treating Jessica for yeast, fungus, or candida whatever you want to call it until we find out more information.

IBD and IBS have similar symptoms but are very different in how they affect the body. IBS is very common affecting about 10-15% of adults in the United States. The Crohn’s and Colitis foundation has a booklet that describes these two issues. They say that IBS, “…does not cause inflammation, permanent damage to the GI tract or an increased risk of colorectal cancer. They say that IBS symptoms could include, “abdominal pain and cramping, bloating, gas, mucus in stool, diarrhea and/or constipation.” http://www.crohnscolitisfoundation.org/assets/pdfs/ibd-and-irritable-bowel.pdf

“Inflammatory bowel diseases are a group of inflammatory conditions in which the body’s own immune system attacks part of the digestive system.” According to the Crohn’s and Colitis foundation the exact cause of IBD remains unknown but researchers believe that there are four factors that lead to IBD including a genetic component, an environmental trigger, imbalance of bacteria and inappropriate reaction of the immune system. Pg. 3 http://www.crohnscolitisfoundation.org/assets/pdfs/ibd-and-irritable-bowel.pdf
A study entitled Diet and Inflammatory Bowel Disease published in Gastroenterology and Hepatology says the IBD has an unknown cause too but, “Multiple factors play a role in pathogenesis of IBD. These many include diet, environmental factors, immunologic factors, infectious agents, genetic susceptibility, and the microbiome.” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4843040/

The symptoms for IBD can include frequent and/or urgent bowel movements, diarrhea, bloody stool, abdominal pain and cramping, fatigue, lack of appetite, weight loss, joint, skin or eye problems.

Inflammatory bowel disease affects an estimated 1.3% of US adults (3 million) reported being diagnosed with IBD (either Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis).1 This was a large increase from 1999 (0.9% or 2 million adults).2 https://www.cdc.gov/ibd/data-statistics.htm

Typically IBD is diagnosed after the age of 15. It can be diagnosed in younger children although it is rare. Crohn’s and Colitis foundation say, “When IBD is diagnosed in childhood it may be more extensive and follow a more severe course than when it is diagnosed in adulthood. Some children with IBD experience delayed puberty and some fail to grow at a normal rate. In approximately one-third of children with Crohn’s disease and one-tenth of children with ulcerative colitis, their final adult height is less than expected because of their IBD.” http://www.crohnscolitisfoundation.org/assets/pdfs/updatedibdfactbook.pdf

The three diets I have recently researched for Jessica and helping with IBD are anti-candida diet, SCD diet, and autoimmune paleo diet. It has taken me a long time to write this blog – today is October 25, 2018 and I had wanted to write this over the summer—better late than never. It was just so overwhelming all the details of these diets and I really wanted to have synthesized the diets very well. I will do my best to present each diet and what is allowed and not allowed on each.

I’ll start with the anti-candida diet. I learned about this first from the author Ann Boroch who wrote The Candida Cure which is where I learned the most about this diet. I followed this diet for myself when I started my own healing journey in 2009. I had candida and many symptoms from it like brain fog, waking up feeling like I was hung over after eating rice, depressed immune system among many others. Just to give you a very brief history or definition of candida hear what Dr. Jack Tips says about it, “Candida albicans starts out as a microorganism know as yeast. Actually it is more accurately defined as ‘yeast like’ microorganism. Yeasts are single-cell plants that inundate this planet, meaning they’re everywhere. But unlike plants, yeasts do not synthesize sunlight and contain no chlorophyll. They ferment sugars and carbohydrates for their life processes instead.” Pg. 11 Conquer Candida and restore your immune system.

Candida is normal for everyone to have on their skin, and inside the body. It can become a pathogen and it does weaken the immune system, but the immune system has to be weak for candida to overgrow in the first place.

Our doctor told us, “We have to kill the yeast.” After our appointment where Jessica’s lab showed very high levels as dysbiotic flora as well as high levels of yeast itself. She believed that if we could kill the yeast maybe we could lower the lactoferrin levels which may have been caused by the yeast and not true IBD. A research study entitled Inflammation and gastrointestinal Candida colonization said, “Candida organisms commonly colonize the human gastrointestinal tract as a component of the resident microbiotia. Their presence is generally benign. Recent studies, however, show that high level Candida colonization is associated with several diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. Further, results from the animal models argue that Candida colonization delays healing of inflammatory lesions and that inflammation promotes colonization. These effects may create a vicious cycle in which low-level inflammation promotes fungal colonization and fungal colonization promotes further inflammation.” The bottom line is that when inflammation is present candida colonization appears to exacerbate inflammation. Pg. 2 of same study above. So here is the bonafide research to prove what our doctor was telling us.

I was successful in getting rid of candida and I do feel so much better but there are times even though I am eating really healthy where my tongue gets a little white, I feel a little more brain fogged and tired and I know candida may have flared internally. The situation is so much worse for my daughter and could contribute to more inflammation and a destructive cycle could continue and candida contributes to leaky gut too.

I did several things besides diet to lower candida overgrowth in my body including using the well-known drug Diflucan and stomach herbs but I mainly got rid of it through diet. Here is the candida diet protocol.

Candida food guide –

Foods to eliminate:

Meats: bacon, canned tuna, hotdogs, processed or packaged meats, sausages
Grains: breads (unless wheat, dairy, yeast, and sugar free), cereals (unless wheat, dariy, and sugar free), corn (tortillas, popcorn, chips), crackers (wheat or white), pasta (brown rice and spelt ok), pastries, tapioca, white rice, white flours, wheat
Vegetables: corn, peas
Beans and Legumes: fermented soy products (only if you find they exaserbate your symptoms), peas
Nuts and seeds: cashews, peanuts
Oils: canola, corn, cottonseed, peanut, processed oils, soy
Dairy: all chesses (cottage and cream included), buttermilk, cow’s milk, goat’s milk, ice cream, margarine, sour cream, yogurt
Fruits: all citrus (except lemon, limes, and grapefruit), all juices (sweetened and unsweetened), all dried fruits (apricots, figs, dates, raisins, and cranberries
Beverages: alcohol, caffeine teas (black, earl grey), coffee, fruit juices, sodas (diet and regular)
Condiments: vinegars, ketchup, gravy, jams and jellies, mayonnaise (unless made with apple cider vinegar), mustard (unless made with apple cider vinegar), pickles, relish, salad dressing (unless it doesn’t contain sugar and made with unsweetened rice vinegar, or apple cider), sauces with vinegar and sugar, soy sauce and tamari sauce, spice that contain yeast, sugar, or additives
Sweeteners: artificial sweeteners (aspartame, maltitol, mannitol, saccharin, sorbitol, and sucralose), barley malt, brown rice syrup, corn syrup, dextrose, maltodextrin, fructose, honey, maple syrup, molasses, raw or evaporated cane juice crystals, white sugar
Other: candy, cookies, cake, donuts, gum, mints lozenges (unless sweetened with stevia), fast or fried food, muffins, pizza, pastries, processed food

Food to enjoy:

Animal protein: beef, lamb (grass fed, 3-4 ounce servings once a week), chicken, eggs, fish, turkey
Grains (whole unrefined only): amaranth, brown rice, buckwheat, millet, quinoa
Vegetables: all especially dark leafy greens and cruciferous kale, collard, broccoli, cauliflower
Beans and legumes: all (no peas or fermented soy products)
Nuts and seeds (raw unroasted only): almonds, brazil nuts, chestnuts, hazelnuts, macadamia, nut butters (can be roasted), pecans, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, walnuts
Oils: coconut oil, flaxseed oil (not for cooking), grapeseed oil (can use for cooking), olive oil (can use for cooking), sesame oil (can use for cooking)
Dairy: butter, clarified butter (ghee)
Fruits: apples, avocado, berries, coconut, grapefruit, lemons, limes (limit fruit to one piece per day, avocado can be in addition to the one fruit a day
Condiments; apple cider vinegar, dry mustard, fresh herbs (basil, parsley), mayonnaise (made with apple cider vinegar only), pepper, rice vinegar (unsweetened only), sea salt, spices (no additives)
Beverages: green tea, herbal teas, unsweetened mineral water, unsweetened almond milk
Sweeteners: stevia
Other: carob, salsa (without sugar)47 This list is adapted from The Candida Cure by Ann Boroch pg. 73-79

In this diet Ann includes many grains including brown rice, millet, and quinoa, dairy in the form of butter. This is really pretty excellent for candida and worked for me but may not be enough for IBD for my daughter.

SCD Diet – from research study Diet and Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Include Avoid
Grains None All cereal grains (oats, wheat, rye, rice, millet)
Fruits all but canned or frozen fruits None
Vegetables all but canned or frozen vegetables potato, yam, corn
Protein all others processed, canned, or smoked meats
Nuts/Seeds/legumes lentil, split pea most except white navy beans (soak for 12 hrs.)
Dairy lactose free ALL others
Beverages wine milk, instant tea, instant coffee, soybean milk, beer
Other saccharin, honey, butter chocolate, margarine, corn syrup

Reference: Bottschall E. Breaking the Vicious Cycle: Intestinal Health Through Diet. Baltimore, Canada: Kirkton Press; 2012

The way this diet is listed in the research above does not convey the difficulty of this diet. Author Elaine Gottschall says that the strictness of this diet cannot be overemphasized or minimized. It requires vigilance and says its unwise to undertake unless you are willing to follow with fanatical adherence. Pg. 67. Elaine describes the diet in great detail which takes nine pages to describe in detail. The main things I remembered is the strictness of no canned veggies, no grains, no potatoes, or dairy except 24 hour fermented yogurt. There are four things on the diet that Jessica cannot eat so this was super confusing for me. Jess does not eat ANY dairy even fermented dairy, NO Eggs which are allowed on this diet, NO honey which is allowed on this diet, and for a short time she was reacting badly to almonds which are allowed on this diet. I found a very detailed list that you can print out at https://www.siboinfo.com/uploads/5/4/8/4/5484269/scd_food-list.pdf which gives even more detailed list of ingredients to eat or not eat of which astragalus is not permitted. Astragalus is an herb from the bean family used to boost the immune system. I do well on it and so has Jess through the breast milk so there will have to be a lot of testing going on for us.

AIP (Autoimmune Protocol)

A research study entitled, Efficacy of the Autoimmune Protocol Diet for Inflammatory Bowel Disease used Angie Alt’s 6 week program called “SAD to AIP in 6) which means standard American diet to autoimmune protocol in 6 weeks. The diet basics consist of eliminating: grains and pseudo grains like quinoa and amaranth among others, beans and legumes, dairy, refined/processed seed and vegetable oils, eggs, alcohol, food chemicals, refined and alternative sweeteners, nuts and seeds, nighshade- family foods including tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant. Pg. 61-62. In the book The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook the authors Angie Alt and Mickey Trescott both of whom are nutrition and health coaches list a much greater list of foods to include and exclude on pages 64-69.

This diet seems to be the most restrictive in that you don’t have eggs, nuts, beans, even pseudo-grains like quinoa which is allowed on the anti-candida diet. What you should include on the AIP diet is bone broth, grass-fed organ meats, grass-fed gelatin or collagen, fermented foods, and lots of colorful fruits and veggies as well as wild-caught fish.

All of these diets seem overwhelming to me even the anti-candida diet you cannot have tuna or hot dogs which we sometimes eat a lot of because of issues with money.
I will let you know how all of these go and what we learn. I hope this information is helpful to you for your own health goals.

More Resources to check out for these three diets

Anti-candida https://www.thecandidadiet.com/anti-candida-diet/

SCD http://www.breakingtheviciouscycle.info/legal/listing/B/
AIP https://www.thepaleomom.com/start-here/the-autoimmune-protocol/