Mold is a fungus that often thrives in moisture and multiplies through lightweight spores that travel via the air. Candida is also a fungus that is found in small quantities in your mouth, intestines, and skin.
Candida lives in your mouth and digestive system to assist digestion. The good bacteria also live in your gut to help keep Candida levels in check by maintaining a balanced and healthy microbiome. However, mold exposure compromises your entire immune system, allowing Candida overgrowth, thus causing a yeast infection. Read more to learn how Candida and mold allergies are linked.
What Is Candida and How Is It Connected With Toxic Mold Exposure?
Candida is a yeast-type of fungus that helps with nutrients absorption and the digestion process. However, abnormal growth of Candida can damage your intestines’ walls and enter your bloodstream, where it starts releasing toxic byproducts into your body, causing the leaky gut syndrome. This syndrome causes various health problems, including digestive issues, depression, anxiety, etc.
What Are the Symptoms of Candida Overgrowth?
Candida overgrowth symptoms include:
- Tiredness and fatigue
- Digestive issues, e.g., studies have linked Candida to ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease
- Skin and nail fungal infections
- Oral thrush or Candidiasis of the mouth
- Recurring genital or urinary tract infections
- Joint pain and Candida arthritis
- Sinus infections
How Do You Get Candida Overgrowth?
Factors that increase the candida levels are:
- Taking several antibiotic medications to treat chronic infections which kill the good bacteria
- A diet rich in sugars, refined carbohydrates, or fermented foods like pickles, kombucha, and sauerkraut
- Excessive alcohol consumption
- Drinking chlorinated water
- Taking oral contraceptives
- Living a stressful lifestyle
How Do You Test for Candida Overgrowth?
Urine Organic Dysbiosis Test
This tests your small intestines and upper gut to see whether D-Arabinitol (a waste product of Candida) levels are increased in your urine. High D-Arabinitol levels indicate Candida overgrowth.
Breathe Test (At Home)
You can breathe onto an EC3 Mold Screening Test Plate, and it’s cultured to indicate whether mold colonies grow.
Stool Testing
This comprehensive stool test screens for Candida in your lower intestines or colon. It usually determines yeast spices, which help for treatment.
Spit Test
Take a clear glass of filtered or distilled water, spit into it, and wait for 15 minutes. Those without Candida will have spit that floats and stays together on the water surface. Strings (like legs) forming from your spit or grainy sediment from your saliva collecting at the bottom indicate Candida overgrowth.
Blood Test
This test screens your levels of (IgG, IgA, and IgM) Candida antibodies. Increased levels indicate Candida overgrowth.
Can Mold in Your Home Worsen Candida?
The Center for Disease Control reveals that Penicillium, Alternaria, Cladosporium, and Aspergillus are common indoor molds. Though there might be a small amount of airborne Candida albicans, mold in your home generally does not worsen Candida. However, exposure to mold can weaken your immune system, and chronic mold exposure can often cause you to become more sensitive to fungi and, thus, worsen your reaction to Candida.
How Do You Treat Candida Overgrowth?
Follow these tips to treat candida overgrowth:
- Eat a diet that’s low in carbohydrates and sugar and avoid fermented foods
- Take a caprylic acid supplement
- Take an antifungal medication
- Take 25 to 100 billion units of probiotics regularly
- Avoid inflammatory foods
Are you looking for expert and comprehensive toxic mold exposure treatment? Call us at 843-572-1600 or schedule an appointment with our experts today to learn more about Candida and mold toxicity.
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Dr. William J. Weirs is a board-certified expert in the field of Emergency Medicine. He has been practicing for over 10 years, expanding his knowledge about various types of patients and clinical problems. Dr. Weirs is currently involved with fulltime consultation in integrative, functional, and environmental medicine. He is an expert in many types of allergy-related disorders and various kinds of autoimmune diseases.