I can only give you my 2 cents worth from personal experience. Candida has a direct link to CFS in my opinion, Im feeling like shit right now from all the sugar I have eaten lately. Candida spreads in heat, thats why I find cold water so soothing.

Sugar free/low carb diets is what is needed to beat candida.

Colostrum and glutamine are things I use also.

I agree, candida is a major player in bogging down the system and consuming all your nutrition and energy. I have been sugar free and low carb for 12 years now, I have it in better control now. Still have it in my skin though, trying to kill it off. You can get a blood stest for the antibodies, to see if your body is fighting candida. Also your stool will smell of ammonia, as that is what the little guys excrete.
Take care,
Jon

Thank you both for your posts. I am going to follow the "Candida" connection and work on my diet. Also, may try the colostrum and glutamine. Have read about these supplements before.

Sending lots of energy and good health your way.

I just went to my doctor, who suffered from CFS for a long time, and said that there is an absoloute, direct link between cfs and candida, he also said the candida makes you so hunrgy for sugars and carbs, because thats what it feeds on, and when you have just a bit of sugar, you dont want to stop, because the candida wants more and more.

I always wondered why I had such intense carb binges since having cfs.

I've been reading about the candida connection to ME/CFS for a long time now, and I'm not sold on the idea. What bothers me is the fact that i've never heard of any scientific evidence for the candida theory.

I'm not saying the connection is not there, it's the fact that I've never seen any scientific research on it that bothers me. The carb cravings could be some other mechanism entirely.

I have noticed, on the other hand, that staying away from sugars of various kinds does seem to help me. So count me as skeptical, but not dismissive of the notion that candida plays a big part in our illness.

I can only speak from personal experience and experience of close friends, there is a direct link.

There are dozens of varieties of candida - many of which exist in harmony with the body in the gut and even on the skin. An overgrowth can occur in people for various reasons including anti-biotic use and HIV - in these cases the bacteria can be extremely dangerous.

There is plenty of information out there about candida. I'm not sure if stool tests are available - does anyone else know?

oh Candida overgrowth is quite real, no matter what the "established Medical establishment" has to say. I have found that the advantage doctor doe not have a clue. They are mainly driven by Big Pharma, if they could get someone hooked on more meds, then they would be more interested in this condition...
Oregano oil is a good cleanser for candida, they sell it in oil or capsule form. I was on a anti fungal medication for the first 6 months, but it can damage the liver, so has to be monitored. Doing the candida diet, and taking the supplements like oregano oil and olive leaf extract will go a long way. You are right about the craving for sweets. If you cut out all wheat, that helps stop the craving for carbs.

There is definitely a connection with candida for me. About a month after being diagnosed with CFS my doctor told me I had candida. She could tell just from looking at my tongue (she said it was coated). I have been on Nystatin (an anti-fungal) for almost two years now. And have been staying away from sweets for over a year. I recently asked my doctor if I still had it and she said, "Definitely. Every time your symptoms get bad that is the candida flaring up." I decided I wanted to try and do everything in my power to get rid of it. So five weeks ago, I started a really strong anti-fungal called Itraconazole and began following the candida diet. it took a week for my body to adjust to the med and then for three weeks I felt amazing! I felt like a healthy person with no symptoms! My doctor lowered my dose of the Itraconazole last week from twice to once a day and I haven't felt that great since. Every time I alter a med it usually takes a while to adjust. We'll see how I continue to do. CFS and candida are complicated because the symptoms are practically identical. I think people who have CFS need to be aware of candida because it could be a major factor for them.

Restingit I am really happy that you have found something that works! :)

Like I said, Colostrum is what I use to kill the candida, and glutamine is what I use to protect the gut wall, which inhibits the candida from leaking to the rest of my body.

Low carb is essential too :)

Interesting thread. I've had candida symptoms along with my diagnosis of CFS also...white stuff on tongue for example...yuck. Also get itchy, irritable, more fatigue, achy, etc.

This is definitely real. Mainstream medicine is good for emergencies and surgery but has few answers for CFS and hypoglycemia.

Does anyone have hypoglycemia relating to candida? Whenever I take anything to kill it my hypoglycemia gets worse. But still working at it!

Lisa

I think candida contributes to CFS, but is not causal. Just my opinion here.

I notice an increase when I don't eat yogurt or mushrooms.

I could understand the yogurt, but why would mushrooms make a difference? Probiotics are always a good fighter of Candida, you can always use more good troops in the system! One thing to keep in mind, if you take something to cause a die off of candida, it will make you feel more ill for a time, this is known as herxing. The body becomes overwhelmed by the toxins of the die off, and overloads the immune system.