Recently, on an e-mail list for candida sufferers to which I subscribe, a lady expressed frustration at the number of different approaches one can take to candida. She felt confused as to which way to treat her own illness. Certainly, it can be very frustrating with any illness when you start to try to figure out how to treat it. There will always be contradictions from all sides. I went through my own time of confusion, as well. I think, however, that the key is to treat your quest in the same way that you would if you were doing a research paper: Look at a variety of different sources and of course, do a lot of preliminary research before writing the paper. Then, when it is time to write, you take all the different perspectives, do your own reasoning about what you have read, and come to your own conclusions.

When searching for how to treat your illness, whether it is candida overgrowth or something else entirely, do your research before you "write"! I have learned that it is not good enough to just absorb all the information and try various approaches as though you were sampling a buffet. You have to think about how all the information you are gathering relates. You have to ask yourself "why" all the time. "Why do I have Candida?" Then when you think you have found an answer, look harder. You may find what looks like an answer: "It's because I took birth control pills, which messed up my immune function." (That was this lady's own perspective, by the way). Is that really the answer? Or is there another layer of "why"? Ask yourself why the birth control pills did that and you may find more answers to questions you hadn't thought to ask.

I have come to the conclusion that the liver plays a big role in all illnesses and that cleaning the liver can be key to starting the healing process. I am very familiar with Chinese medicine, but apparently, it is very focused on treating the liver for any illness. All the other remedies, diets, and medicines may "work" to a degree, but your body has to be in a state that makes it possible to heal. The liver is your body's filter and if it is not functioning properly, then you cannot filter toxins, which are subsequently circulating in your body, making it harder to heal. Things such as birth control pills have a harmful affect on your liver. What one eats also affects liver function, and thus affects candida and other illnesses that a person may have. If you eat a "candida diet" or any other special diet, how much it helps your candida is correlated to how much it helps your liver.

A great book I highly recommend is The Liver Cleansing Diet by Dr. Sandra Cabot. She goes into these ideas deeper and has a great eating plan for cleansing the liver. After doing that type of cleanse, the key is to eat a healthy, liver-friendly diet. It is a diet that is well-balanced, full of fresh fruits and vegetables, and low in "bad" fats, while providing plenty of healthy fats. It is a diet that most people would recognize as a practical, healthy diet. (Interestingly, before I read her book, I was already eating--or trying to eat--a diet very similar to the one she proposes based on my own conception of a healthy diet from other reading on various topics.)

So, that is my own experience with researching various casues and treatment options for candida and the conclusions that I have come to based upon it. I hope you, too, will consider the role of the Liver in candida and other illnesses, and above all, do your own research before you draw conclusions!

The information provided is for educational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for medical care.