With the Candida Diet, many focus on what you can’t eat but I’m here to tell you that there are many incredibly good foods you CAN eat. You can literally enjoy as many of these foods as you like to promote your healing.
The table below contains my up to date Candida diet food list. Just to note 96% of the items on this list, Candida experts mutually agree on. I’ve put the ones debated in italics but I’ve tried and tested them myself.
| Category | Foods to Eat | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Proteins |
Fish Poultry Eggs Feta (small amount)* Bacon Probiotic yogurt, Coconut yogurt & kefir* Protein powders (Pea protein, Goats Whey, Hemp seed) |
On cheese – some people don’t allow any dairy on this diet. This is something you need to decide for yourself. There is no right or wrong way. It’s best to give your body a break with dairy for at least a month before re-introducing it, and to avoid any smoked foods (check bacon label – make sure it doesn’t contain sugar). Kefir, Coconut yoghurt and legumes from Stage 3 of the diet |
| Vegetables | All allowed (except potatoes and sweet, starchy veg) |
Potatoes and sweet starchy veg like Butternut squash best eaten from Stage 3 on-wards and only small amounts e.g. 2 small potatoes as a side dish choose cold potatoes over baked potatoes – lower glycemic index |
| Grains & legumes |
Wholegrain rice*, Quinoa, Paleo wraps
|
Grains and legumes are controversial – Due to the high mineral amount in them and since they keep the blood sugar levels constant for a long time I personally include them in my diet (in small amounts and combined with Coconut oil and/ or Cinnamon or herbs). Same with (lentils & beans). Be sure to only have them occasionally & combine with greens. Better: chickpeas/ garbanzos as they are classed as seeds rather than beans; use chickpea flour only if it agrees with you. Instead of wheat tortillas or regular wheat flour pancakes use ‘Paleo wraps’ made from coconut.
|
| Yeast Free | Yeast free stock/ broth | |
| Beverages (cold) |
Filtered water Rice milk and Coconut water (small amounts) Almond & Coconut milk Sparkling water with fresh Lemon juice Green Smoothie/ Green juice * Apple Cider Vinegar* |
Green juice – (glass of water with half a teaspoon of chlorella powder, a hint of Spirulina and optional: the juice from half a lemon) Green smoothie only if it doesn’t contain tropical fruit, sweeten with Stevia if necessary Apple cider vinegar drink (2 tea spoons of cloudy acv diluted in a glass of water – drink on awakening and before/ with every meal-if you can stomach it, some people are sensitive and need to heal those areas first) |
| Beverages (hot) |
Warm water Green tea Herbal teas e.g. Chamomile, Mint Ginger root tea Nettle Mullein Tea Hot lemon Dandelion Root coffee Pau D’arco tea |
Warm water (cooking the water for 20 minutes or longer makes it alkaline, very good for you) (calms nerves and aids digestion) Double thumb size piece of ginger chopped and boiled in 1 litre + of water Nettle Mullein Tea (good detox, combats cold symptoms, not sold in stores – have to buy it lose and mix yourself) Dandelion Root coffee (not the granules, they contain sugar) |
| Snacks |
Nuts (esp. Coconut) & seeds Hummus and veg sticks Grain free crackers |
Pre-soak nuts and seeds overnight and only enjoy in moderation (the fibre can make you constipated and indigestion).
|
| Spices & Oils |
Olive oil Coconut oil Flax oil Organic sunflower oil Garlic Cayenne pepper Oregano Cloves Cinnamon | All these herbs are great because they have anti-fungal properties. Apple Cider Vinegar best from stage 3 on-wards as fermented foods can trigger an auto-immune response. |
Last weekend my husband treated me with your sweet lamb bolognese dish! What a sweetie!
In any case, it was scrumptious! We thoroughly enjoyed it. We Americans pay double the price of beef for lamb, however my husband is so resourceful that he’s found ways to find it marked down. We used ‘ground’ lamb. So, sometimes lamb is hard to find here in Oklahoma, USA, but not impossible. And when we are able to find it, it’s tasty.
Thanks for this wonderful recipe. Even though I’m healed of the candida condition today, we’re still enjoying the recipes ? Thanks!
Oh wonderful, I’m glad to hear it, Edie ?
We eat quite a bit of lamb here in the UK, so I guess it must be more affordable here compared with the US. I definitely noticed that it was more expensive over in Germany the last time I visited.
I also really like lamb in a “Moroccan” stew with carrots, apricots, cinnamon, potatoes and dumplings (all things that you can now fully enjoy, yay!)
All my best & Keep in touch!
Hi Sandra. I am short on time tonight, so I didn’t get the chance to read all of the previous comments. If you’ve already covered this topic in an earlier comment, just refer me back to it. I’ve trying to stick to the Candida Diet since about July and I’ve had great success with “feeling better.” I can tell you more about that at a later time, but I had a question for you as of now. I’ve been strictly using stevia as my only sweetener, but I just recently came across a couple of other sweeteners that I can’t seem to find a whole lot of info about. I was wondering if you know anything about “Just Like Sugar,” “Sweet Perfection,” and “Oligofructose.” I was on Amazon’s site, after your Giveaway suggestions and these are some of the products the site recommended to me. What do you think? Thank you for your help! Annalisa
Hi Annalisa, I don’t know sweet perfection but oligofructose is a form of fruit sugar so not good on the candida diet.
In the later stages of stage 3 I had good results from using 50%stevia and 50% xylitol. That way I couldn’t taste taste the stevia and needed less xylitol which still contains a little fruit sugar and can cause loose stools in sensitive individuals, but has a very low glycemic index.
I think that’s ok for a special occasion but not as everyday sweetener. While you are still experiencing symptoms I’d go without sweetener or use only stevia.
Hello Sandra, thank you so much for your help and guidance! A very positive start! Please may I check about something…Tiana sugar alternative (made from flower’s) is this an alternative that can be used or not?
Hello Camilla, many thanks for your comment. Great question! Looks like Tiana sugar alternative is made from Coconut blossom nectar, so in essence it’s Coconut sugar. If you have an acute Candida infection then any type of sugar, even this delicious sugar would be off the books because it would feed the yeast and add to the overgrowth. But for someone without Candida this would be a fantastic alternative to refined sugar.
Hi Sandra,
Unfortunately I cannot eat Tomatoes or Peppers. Some months back my Daughter found a brilliant substitute for Tomato Sauce, with carrot and beetroot as it’s main ingredients.
I stopped using it when I began my Candida Diet but introduced a small amount two nights ago with
an Plain Omelette but had a bad reaction, with blocked Sinuses and closed up throat.
Have you any suggestions for a similar sauce?
Thanks for your email course. I am on 17/30. Most informative.
Thank you Brian, I’m glad you are finding the info useful. Unfortunately all the Nomato sauces I know use butternut squash which would most likely give you the same reaction as the beetroot because it is equally as rich in natural fruit sugars. Just stick to green vegetables for the time being to be on the safe side or a simple home made cheese free pesto sauce. Soon you’ll be able to enjoy pasta sauces again. Hang in there!
Can you have carrott, sweet potatoes, beetroot, gluten free oats ?
Not in the first two stages of this diet, only from stage 3 (unless of course you don’t have a Candida problem in which case those foods would be fine as long as they agree with you).
Can you have maize flour ? ive seen some gluten free corn crisps made with maize flour and sunflower oil.
Maize = carbs = feeds yeast. So it would only be ok once Candida levels are under control. But even then one thing is to consider is that they often use GMO modified corn, which would be very unhealthy. That aside anything deep fried can trigger a flare up. So if you can avoid it go without or keep it to a minimum.
How do we know which ones are phase 1, 2 and 3 foods? Thank you!!!
Hi Jenny, fair comment. You either have to look at the food lists and work it out for yourself or you buy my recipes books ‘Sugar free and easy candida diet recipes 1 + 2’ – all the stage 1&2 recipes are in the first book, all rich carbs recipes in the second one. Hope this helps.
Would xylitol be OK as a sugar substitute while on a Candida diet?
It works for many long-term Candida sufferers, but not for everyone. A little goes a long way…
Hi I have just started the diet and am on stage 2. I instantly found relief with cutting out dairy. However I am struggling with stopping the morning black coffee. Is decaf ok?
Hi Helen, I’m afraid it’s not ok. It’s still acidic, a stimulant. Try chicory coffee, it’s not bad at all.