- Joined
- Oct 18, 2012
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- 4,492
When in hospital recently, I acquired an infection from a central line that had been placed in my neck so that I could receive TPN. I started getting fevers, my blood tests showed signs of infection, so the doctors took a blood sample. Apparently it was a special kind of sample; nurses couldn't take blood, it had to be done by a doctor. They spent a few days growing cultures on it, and when the results came back, they told me I had candida, a fungus, that had infected my bloodstream.
I was treated first with IV anti-fungals for a few weeks, then with oral anti-fungals. The treatment worked very effectively, and cultures done a couple of weeks later showed the infection had completely gone.
However, it could have been a pretty serious thing: I had my eyes, skin, vagina, heart, mouth and throat all tested for the infection, even though they told me the risk of it spreading was low as it was caught early. But at the worst point, I had a temperature over 40, so I was pretty sick.
But since I've been out of hospital, I've been doing some googling to find out more about it, and was reminded that many years ago, when doctors were telling me I just had Irritable Bowel Syndrome and I went in desperation to alternative health practitioners, I'd come across candida back then.
It seems it's been grabbed by alternative medicine, as a condition that can cause virtually any symptom, and which can be treated through a very strict diet and various supplements.
E.g sites like this one: http://www.thecandidadiet.com/what-is-candida-albicans/
Why are sites like this telling people they have candida in their digestive system, bloodstream or elsewhere? Why are they telling people candida causes their fatigue, IBS, food allergies, and just about every other symptom or medical condition you can think of?
I know that women get thrush, I believe that's also a form of candida, and it's a very horrible thing, though a different condition from the type of infection that I had. But why are alternative practitioners telling people they have candida, when clearly if they really did and they saw any conventional doctor, the doctor would send them to hospital, they'd be diagnosed via blood tests, and treated with anti-fungals? There would have been a specific cause of the infection, and there'd be no mention of special diets or supplements, or how candida was the cause of their fatigue or their eczema or whatever.
Because I was taken advantage of by alternative practitioners, not so much with the idea of candida, but with similar conditions, like food intolerances and "leaky gut"; conditions which may have some real medical counterpart, but are being used in alternative medicine in some very un-scientific way, it makes me cross to see people trying to convince others that candida is the cause of their symptoms, and probably try to get them to but some products or books or have a consultation, or put themselves on incredibly restrictive diets for months.
I've seen enough threads on this forum to know that some members here have tried some similarly restrictive diets or alternative supplements, and I also know that, unlike me, some people here claim such alternative practices have helped them.
Am I missing something? Is there some other type of candida that genuinely can be cured by giving up sugar, and which doesn't require you to be sent to hospital? Have people tried to convince you it is the cause of your Crohn's/Colitis symptoms? I know that I had the candida, and I know it was cured by anti-fungals with no diet changes or supplements - I had the blood results to prove it. Why take such a potentially serious condition and tell people that they have it, when there is no evidence to support the idea?
Sorry, I'm just rambling. I used to be very gullible, and very desperate to be cured, and I'm sure I'm not the only one. I'd love to hear others' thoughts on this - and if you completely disagree with me and believe candida as presented by alternative medicine is real and can be treated through diet and supplements, I'd love to hear that too. I'm very open to hearing success stories if you've found healing through alternative medicine.
I was treated first with IV anti-fungals for a few weeks, then with oral anti-fungals. The treatment worked very effectively, and cultures done a couple of weeks later showed the infection had completely gone.
However, it could have been a pretty serious thing: I had my eyes, skin, vagina, heart, mouth and throat all tested for the infection, even though they told me the risk of it spreading was low as it was caught early. But at the worst point, I had a temperature over 40, so I was pretty sick.
But since I've been out of hospital, I've been doing some googling to find out more about it, and was reminded that many years ago, when doctors were telling me I just had Irritable Bowel Syndrome and I went in desperation to alternative health practitioners, I'd come across candida back then.
It seems it's been grabbed by alternative medicine, as a condition that can cause virtually any symptom, and which can be treated through a very strict diet and various supplements.
E.g sites like this one: http://www.thecandidadiet.com/what-is-candida-albicans/
Why are sites like this telling people they have candida in their digestive system, bloodstream or elsewhere? Why are they telling people candida causes their fatigue, IBS, food allergies, and just about every other symptom or medical condition you can think of?
I know that women get thrush, I believe that's also a form of candida, and it's a very horrible thing, though a different condition from the type of infection that I had. But why are alternative practitioners telling people they have candida, when clearly if they really did and they saw any conventional doctor, the doctor would send them to hospital, they'd be diagnosed via blood tests, and treated with anti-fungals? There would have been a specific cause of the infection, and there'd be no mention of special diets or supplements, or how candida was the cause of their fatigue or their eczema or whatever.
Because I was taken advantage of by alternative practitioners, not so much with the idea of candida, but with similar conditions, like food intolerances and "leaky gut"; conditions which may have some real medical counterpart, but are being used in alternative medicine in some very un-scientific way, it makes me cross to see people trying to convince others that candida is the cause of their symptoms, and probably try to get them to but some products or books or have a consultation, or put themselves on incredibly restrictive diets for months.
I've seen enough threads on this forum to know that some members here have tried some similarly restrictive diets or alternative supplements, and I also know that, unlike me, some people here claim such alternative practices have helped them.
Am I missing something? Is there some other type of candida that genuinely can be cured by giving up sugar, and which doesn't require you to be sent to hospital? Have people tried to convince you it is the cause of your Crohn's/Colitis symptoms? I know that I had the candida, and I know it was cured by anti-fungals with no diet changes or supplements - I had the blood results to prove it. Why take such a potentially serious condition and tell people that they have it, when there is no evidence to support the idea?
Sorry, I'm just rambling. I used to be very gullible, and very desperate to be cured, and I'm sure I'm not the only one. I'd love to hear others' thoughts on this - and if you completely disagree with me and believe candida as presented by alternative medicine is real and can be treated through diet and supplements, I'd love to hear that too. I'm very open to hearing success stories if you've found healing through alternative medicine.
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