Candida Cleanses: Are Anti-Yeast Diets Just a Fad?
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If your patients are regular visitors to certain popular nutritional-lifestyle websites, they might have heard some alarming news — their stomachs are teeming with Candida and it's wrecking their health. On Goop they can find an interview with physician Amy Myers, who estimates that 90% of her patients, and approximately half of all women, have an overgrowth of this yeast. Courtesy of Dr Oz, they'll learn that Candida overgrowth is likely causing their chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, or spastic colon. The constellation of symptoms attributed to the fungus is so wide-ranging that mainstream news publications have labeled the diagnosis as pseudoscience. Yet, according to other websites, the only hope are what have been variously termed "anti-Candida diets," "anti-yeast diets," or "Candida cleanses." These dietary interventions share a common goal of curbing or eliminating the sugars and carbohydrates that have been linked to Candida growth. Take aim at these components, the theory goes, and you'll starve the Candida that's at the root of your health problems. There's even a celebrity endorsement of this dietary approach via actress Rebel Wilson, who attributes it to her recent 60-pound weight loss.
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@rini Candida's increasing reputation as a gastrointestinal (GI) menace has led to a counterresponse from concerned experts, who say that opportunistic forces are turning a largely benign and common fungus into fodder for fad diets. One such critic is registered dietician Abby Langer, who was alarmed enough about discussions she saw about Candida overgrowth to write a critical post of it on her popular blog in 2020.