After studying what I could on the internet, I next went to the Big Carrot on Danforth Avenue. The Big Carrot is a wonderful resource centre for any natural approach to healing. The dispensary is staffed with nutritionists, naturopaths, homeopaths, and dieticians making it a great source of free advice. I was helped by a knowledgeable nutritionist that recommended a kit called Yeast Buster, manufactured by Inno Vite. The kit comes with caproil, psyllium, and bentonite that are blended together in a drink that is taken every morning. The caproil is an anti-fungal that kills the yeast it comes into contact with, the psyllium is a bulking agent that pushes the caproil into all the crevices of the GI tract, and the bentonite acts as a sponge that absorbs all the dead yeast and helps to pull it out of the GI tract. Finally, DDS Acidophilus, also included, is taken at night to help replenish the flora populations. The kit also comes with a guide with instructions on diet, supplements, and some recipes.
The simplest part of the cure was the supplements, after all, we are a culture of pill poppers. The supplements serve to basically poison the intestinal yeast and drag it out of the digestive system, while repopulating the flora. By simply swallowing these daily, we effect a big change on our bodies. But candida is not something that goes away easily and the diet portion of the treatment may seem worse than the disease. The diet is something that will not fail to astonish you.
Here is a summary of the diet recommended by the Yeast Buster Kit:
The “YES” List – These foods can be eaten at any time during the program
Proteins
- • beans (all types) + sprouted beans
- • Poultry, fish, deep sea fish (tuna, marlin, halibut, sea bass, wild pacific salmon)
- • Tofu, unsweetened soymilk (if tolerated)
- • naturally raised chicken or turkey
- • organic eggs (if tolerated). Regular eggs contain antibiotics and hormones.
- • Almonds, almond milk, raw or soaked nuts and seeds (except cashews, peanuts, and pistachios)
Sweetener
- • stevia (an herbal sweetener that does not feed Candida)
Vegetables
- • green leafy vegetables, parsley, beet greens, lettuce, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, bok choy, spinach, alfalfa sprouts, sprouts, kale
- • zucchini, artichokes, avacadoes, green beans, onions, asparagus, carrots, celery, eggplant, chard, garlic (preferably raw), peppers, cucumbers, snow peas, parsnips, radishes, soybeans, squash, water chesnuts, hot chillis, tomatoes, turnips
- • sea vegetables (nori, dulse, wakame, etc.)
- • all vegetables that are not overly sweet or starchy
Grains
- • high-protein alternative grains (quinoa or amaranth)
- • sprouted grains
- • Braggs Amino Acids (non-fermented, wheat-free soy sauce)
Oils
- • flax oil (unheated), extra-virgin olive oil
- • ghee (clarified butter)
Condiments
- • carob powder
- • tahini, raw nut butters, soy nut butter
- • vinegar-free pickles (if tolerated)
- • garlic, lemon, onion
Carbs
- • oats, millet bread, brown rice, spelt bread, spelt pasta, brown rice pasta, buckwheat, quinoa, amaranth, spelt, kamut, teff
Nuts
- • almonds, filberts, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds
Misc.
- • butter, apple cider vinegar, lemons, almond butter (organic)
- • Drink 1-2 litres of water daily
The Yes list looks promising. There are a lot of foods that I am already familiar with, some foods that I have heard of and never tried, and then a whole host of things that I did not know were food. But, some foods were ominously not included on the yes list. Surely, chocolate, ice cream and candy would never be included on the yes list, but what about all of my other favourite foods? Sadly enough, the no list was pretty intimidating.
The “NO” List – Eliminate these foods for the duration of this program.
Sweets
- • barley, honey, corn, or rice syrup
- • cow milk, goat milk, cheese, yogurt, kefir
- • pastries, cookies, candies, etc.
- • white, brown, date sugar
- • any foods containing concentrated sweeteners
- • maple syrup, molasses
- • fructose, glucose, maltose
Yeasts and Fermented Foods
- • alcohol (wine, beer, spirits, liqueurs)
- • yeast (bakers, nutritional, and brewers)
- • pickles, miso
- • white bread, pasta, muffins, pancakes, cereal
- • black tea
- • soy sauce, relish, worcestershire, sauerkraut
- • malted products, vinegar, mustard, ketchup, sauces, mayonnaise
- • white crackers, yeast breads & pastries, potato chips, corn chips
Processed Meats / Misc
- • Sausages, ham, bacon, pastrami, hot dogs, lunch meat, corned beef, smoked meats & fish (contain yeast derivatives), corn, white/sweet potatoes, yeast
Common Allergenic Foods
- • corn, peanuts, cashews, pistachios
- • dairy foods
- • mushrooms
- • wheat
Foods Easily Converted Into Simple Sugars
- • dry fruit, fruit juice, sweet fruits: grapes, bananas, mangoes, etc.
- • refined-grain pastas, refined flours
- • white rice
Not Recommended
- • hydrogenated or refined vegetable oils (lowers immunity)
- • red meats (may contain nitrates and are mucus producing)
Finally, there is the reduce list. It is not quite a yes, and not exactly a no. These foods should be taken off the diet completely for the beginning of the program and then later added back once your condition has started improving.
The “REDUCE” List
Grains Sweet or Starchy Vegetables
- • brown rice (any kind)
- • sweet potatoes
- • whole-grain pasta (rice, kamut, spelt), whole-grain yeast-free breads
- • parsnips, potatoes
- • oat, spelt, or kamut whole grains, organic oatmeal
- • cooked carrots
- • sauerkraut, pickles (may contain yeast-like Fruits substances)
- • lemons or semi-sweet fruits (apples, pears, peaches, plums, watermelons)
Sweeteners
- • apple juice (as a sweetener, not a beverage)
- • rice syrup
- • organic molasses
- • fruit-source powder
- • Sucanat
The purpose of the diet is starvation. It may seem like it is just trying to starve you, but in reality, it is trying to starve and weaken the yeast. By cutting off all the sugars and yeasts you are taking in, the yeast has nothing to feed on and dies off more quickly. The problem is that yeast love all the same foods that you love. They love all the sweetness, the desserts, the parts of a meal that you might rave about after. This diet was going to be one of the toughest things I have ever done.
The diet would be especially difficult because I am generally opposed to eating this way. I consider myself to be an omnivore. I eat everything and I love eating everything. I have made 100km road trips for a slice of cake, eaten deep fried insects in Asia, and just about anything that can be found in a market. While I am aware that diet can play a very large role in one’s health, I prefer to look the other way and simply enjoy one of life’s greatest pleasures. I have done cleanses in the past, but they were only for a week or two. A candida cleanse takes 3 months to a year to complete.
In the guide, there is a questionnaire that rates the level of severity of candida you are experiencing. Mild is 35-55, moderate is 55-80, and severe is 80+. I scored a ridiculous 124. Perhaps I was feeling a little extra whiny or wimpy that day, but even with the largest margin of error possible, it was clear that I was suffering from a severe case of candida. Bold action would be needed.
I took the kit home and right away started the cleanse.