Yeast infections can contribute to many symptoms including:
• Fatigue
• Headache
• Poor memory, brain fog
• Skin rashes
• Vaginal symptoms (itchiness, discharge)
• Gas, bloating
• Diarrhea
 
In addition to symptoms, yeast infections can exacerbate GI diseases such as Ulcerative Colitis, Crohn’s Disease and SIBO.
 
Treatment

Anti-fungal medications are often prescribed in cases of yeast infections. Although they may be effective at managing some symptoms, they may not completely clear the infection and/or may not prevent the infection from returning. Naturopathic Doctors aim to address the underlying causes and reasons for why the yeast infection developed in the first place and recommend a treatment approach that can alleviate symptoms and prevent future recurrence.
 
Some considerations to addressing yeast infections are:
• Eradicate yeast using natural anti-fungals and decreasing biofilms.
• Decreasing the yeast’s food source – yeast are known to feed on sugars and decreasing sugar consumption along with helping the body manage blood sugar levels can shorten the yeast’s life cycle.
• Improving the gut flora – eliminating yeast and bad bacteria residing along the GI tract and improving healthy gut bacteria can support a healthy gut environment.
• Minimizing leaky gut – a leaky gut promotes the growth of yeast in the GI tract and contributes to many GI symptoms.
• Balancing hormones – high levels of estrogen have been shown to contribute to the growth of yeast, especially in the vaginal tract.
• Addressing heavy metal toxicity – yeast seems to thrive in toxic heavy metal environments so the removal of accumulated heavy metals in the body may be an important factor.