Candida Diet Update August – How what I ate affected how I felt

Addiction to Apple & Pear Spread and Lazy Meals – Risking a Relapse

I aimed for improving my lifestyle (going to bed at 10.30pm, not pushing myself to the limit with work, basically stopping before I felt tired and run down) – found that very hard though since it was the run up to publishing my first Kindle book (check it out here in case you haven’t seen it)!

Also had my work cut out to get back in the swing with a reasonably clean diet after my 5 days of frolicking with friends at a music festival. I had great plans for starting a fast on my return. But because I had been eating all the wrong foods and even drinking alcohol my whole rhythm was out of whack and I found myself resorting to quick & easy meals that were not super healthy.

Needless to say that after the festival I developed a few symptoms and felt run down. Lots of bread, little veg, no fish, a fair amount of non-organic meat and lots of fruit smoothies and pancakes with apple and pear spread.

That’s my latest addiction: Pancakes (preferably gluten free) with probiotic yoghurt and pear spread – strange, I know – but I’m crazy about it!!!

Just to recap: This is what was going on last month: Too many fruit smoothies and 5 days of Sugar, Booze, White Flour Bread & Late night Unhealthiness

I ate healthily all month really. Even drinking bone broth again, taking meds to heal/ prevent leaky gut and eating healthy foods. The only weakness really were the fruit smoothies that I pretty much had daily.

Then I lived really unhealthy for 5 days. With this over-the-top indulgence undoing all the goodness of the previous weeks of healthy eating.

For the first time in years I ate white bread and white rice on a regular basis. Going from virtually symptom free to sniffles and regular thrush flare ups in the space of two weeks.

What I typically ate this month: (fish, potatoes, and gf free whole grains)

It felt impossible for me to get back onto the diet after giving into temptation on a regular basis (think fruit, white bread, white pasta…) My attempt at fasting failed miserably — I didn’t even manage to eat less, let alone stay away from fruit.

Biggest change: No pot noodles or pitta breads; eating before/ at 6pm rather than between 7.30 and 9pm. Having soup/ broth before lunch. Started eating lots of gluten free oats and sometimes even normal oats.

Breakfast:

• During the week homemade soda bread with homemade spreads. At the weekend Ground Rice Pudding with Apple Slices or Gluten free Porridge Oats

Lunch:

• Creamy Stir Fry with Chicken, Veg and Bacon or Feta or Scrambled Eggs with Bread and Salad

Dinner

• Spelt bread with tuna or salmon and potatoes

What I snacked on: Smoothies and gf free pancakes with Apple & Pear Spread

• Started putting really sweet fruit into my green smoothies (handful of cherries or even pineapple)

• Also liberally adding agave syrup whenever something tasted a bit sour.

• And of course obsessively slapping the apple & pear spread onto toasted bread and pancakes.

• Drinks: water, dandelion tea, Pau d’arco tea, nettle/ mullein tea, yannoh (coffee sub)

(at the festival: apple, pear and berry cider, gin tonic, hot chocolate, mojito, long island ice tea – ouch!)

Lifestyle/ Activities: Low Key

• Being less sporty – only doing 1 yoga class a week and running about 1-2 times a week. (going for 2 brisk walks a day though).
• Reading, reading, reading!

Health Issues this month:

• Thrush on and off
• Itchy, irritable eyes
• Itchy skin patch
• Bouts of depression and mood swings
• Aching

What Supplements I took:

• Rotating olive leaf capsules (twice daily), wormwood & clove drops (once a day), goldenseal capsules (1 a day) and oil of oregano drops (2 drops once a day).

• Higher strength probiotics (50 billion organisms) twice a day

• Magnesium (and the usual multi vit, chlorella, spirulina, linseed oil, evening primrose & fish oil)

• L-Glutamin (for tissue healing after exercise and after eating very spicy foods)

To recap what I learned/ How this Applies to You:

Weeks of Dietary Sins during Stage 3/4 Eventually Cause a Relapse that takes weeks to undo

• You basically cannot eat sweet fruit on a daily basis AND have whole weeks where you eat completely normal (think pizza, white flour bread rolls, chips and mayo, booze, chocolate…) and get away with it. That might work once you’re fully recovered AND you have continued to stick with a clean diet for a fair few months. But straight away after having normal candida levels it doesn’t work. Ah well, somebody had to test it I guess ?

• It’s looking hopeful though. The diet changes for the better seem to be catching up. I already feel much better and have eliminated all symptoms again, finally (took me 3 weeks this time). I’m hopeful that next month I’ll still be symptom free for once

Leave a comment below the sign up box to tell me how you’re getting on with your diet at the mo. And if you’d like to receive my next candida diet update, health tips or recipes by email, then sign up for updates below.

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