5 Stages of Candida

The Wellness Guru site analyzed candida in a way that few other wellness centers, sites or practitioners do. The Wellness Guru categorized candida in stages or categories based on how badly the yeast has affected the human body. This is a reason why when people with candida go online to find a diet to help them eliminate their problem they find diets that conflict with one another, e.g. one says don't eat meat and others say do; don't eat tomatoes, but other sites say eat them; many sites say don't eat peas or winter squash or potatoes while many others list those starchy items under vegetables to be eaten; and then the most conflicting one to me is the very few sites that say don't eat dairy or even yogurt because of the lactose (another form of sugar) and hormone content of milk and yet the vast majority of sites assert that yogurt is loaded with the good bacteria and will help build more good bacteria. Hmmm, in my case milk especially but all dairy immediately makes my twisted pinky joint swell and I get achy and my throat phlegmy. Maybe it's just me, but I think not. With all the conflicts over what is "good" for the body, and what isn't, no wonder people are confused.

Well, Wellness Guru has an eye-opening 5 category analysis of candida as a progressive disease. The analysis is certainly not comprehensive but it is thought-provoking. On their website after the 5 categories are analyzed, they also posted dietary recommendations and restrictions per each category. I would post those here also, but there are a few points in the listings I don't agree with and since I already posted a Strict Candida Diet once, I'm not going to post what I think is a more careful diet for each of the categories. Their diet recommendations, however, are certainly worth taking a look at. They might very much help someone decide when a food item should be assiduously avoided ... or added back in.

The 5 Categories of Candida (not comprehensive)

Category #1 - The individual is probably not experiencing any major discomforts or ailments but may once in a while not feel 100%. This person would benefit from a modified yeast free regime to prevent future problems and to fine tune the occasional imbalances; however, it is not essential.

Category #2 - The individual is beginning to experience small irritations and occasional discomforts such as digestive problems, PMS, food and environmental sensitivities and allergies, headaches, fatigue, sinus and bronchial problems, anxieties, canker sores in the mouth, thrush in the vagina or mouth, athlete’s foot, an itchy groin in men or women, vaginal discharge, mild skin irritations.

Category #3 - The individual is experiencing a number of problems on a weekly basis such as gastrointestinal problems, hormonal imbalances, food and environmental sensitivities and allergies, headaches, fatigue, sinus and bronchial problems, anxieties, occasional sleep disturbances, pain and discomfort in the joints and limbs, canker sores in the mouth, thrush in the vagina or mouth, athlete’s foot, an itchy groin in men or women, vaginal discharge, skin irritations or have had surgery on an organ.

Category #4 - The individual may be suffering sleep disorders including difficulty going to sleep and/or waking up during the night, depressions, constant fatigue, pain and discomfort in the joints and limbs, temperature fluctuations, eye-sight problems, chronic gastrointestinal problems such as constant constipation, presence of cysts, endometriosis, irritable bowel syndrome, colitis, ulcers, kidney stones, serious skin conditions, migraine headaches, nightmares, elevated sugar or cholesterol problems, high or low blood pressure, arthritis and rheumatism.

Category #5 - the individual has been diagnosed with a serious heart condition, HIV, AIDS, cancer, MS, Parkinson’s, or any other life threatening condition.

In my wide readings I found one other site that also categorized candida in 5 stages. I don't recall much about the stages except that stage #4 was when the candida yeast/mold had compromised a few or many organs in the body and they were starting to badly malfunction or shut down. Stage #3 was pretty extreme too, something like extreme insomnia, restlessness, racing heart and other problems that I had experienced at disease onset. I figure that when I was at my absolute worst and almost completely disfunctional that I probably was in stage #4 in this other candida classification heirarchy. I was eating only vegetables and forcing myself to walk in the freezing weather every day (when I could) and oh so slowly I started to get better. Thank goodness too, because I didn't diagnosis myself for many more months or come across that staging until even after that. Stage #5 on that web page was pretty scary, death. When the yeast/mold totally engulfs the organs, they can't function. For the Wellness Guru the stage #6 unspoken category would also be death. Very uncomfortable to think about.