CANDIDA and the ANTIBIOTIC SYNDROME
By Walter LastLackof energy and digestive disturbances, arthritic joint pains, skin disease, menstrual problems, emotional instability and depression. All symptoms of what I call theantibiotic syndromewhich have greatly increased in frequency in recent years. There could be a history of thrush or oral, anal or vaginal itching. When these are present the diagnosis of Candida is obvious but it may also be present in the absence of these manifestations and that can be somewhat confusing. The yeast or fungus Candida albicans of course, thrives during antibiotic treatment. I regard it as reckless negligence to prescribe antibiotics without simultaneous fungicides and replacement therapy with lactobacilli afterwards. I believe that this practice has greatly added to our vast pool of a chronically sick population.However, the antibiotic syndrome is not just due to Candida. I regard it more generally as a dysbiosis where the wrong kind of microbes inhabit the intestinal tract, not just Candida and other fungi, but many types of pathogenic bacteria including coli which are normal in the colon but become disease-forming when they ascend into the small intestine.If the problem has existed for years, there is usually a lack of gastric acid which then allows the stomach to be colonised by microbes, causing inflammation with pain and later, ulcers. The toxins released by the microbial overpopulation cause in addition chronic inflammation of the liver, gall bladder, pancreas and intestines. I regard it as rather likely that a chronic inflammation of the pancreas is a major contributing factor in the development of insulin-dependent diabetes.Bacterial Attack Specific types of pathogenic bacteria appear to cause or contribute to specific autoimmune diseases. One variety of coli bacteria, for instance, produces a molecule that is very similar to insulin. When the immune system becomes activated against this molecule it may then also attack related features at the beta cells of the pancreasAnother type of bacteria,Yersiniaenterocolitica,induces an immune response that attacks the thyroid gland and leads to Graves disease with a serious overproduction of thyroid hormones.
Ulcerative colitis is linked to overgrowth with pathogenic microbes, the same asCrohnsdisease, osteoporosis andankylosingspondylitis. Inankylosingspondylitisthe vertebra of the spine fuse together causing stiffness and pain. Other joints may in time become affected.
Klebsiella,another type of pathogenic bacteria, produces a molecule that is similar to a tissue type found in people with this disease. WhenKlebsiellanumbers in the gut decrease, related antibodies in the blood decrease and the condition improves.
Rheumatoid arthritis is linked to other bacteria, calledProteus. Proteusis also a common cause of urinary tract infections. Women suffer urinary tract infections as well as rheumatoid arthritis twice as often as men, while men usually have higher levels of Klebsiellaand three times
moreankylosingspondylitisthan women.
In addition microbial overgrowth dam ages the intestinal wall so that only partly digested food particles can pass into the bloodstream, causing allergies. In this way all autoimmune diseases can be linked to food allergies.
While rheumatoid arthritis is a frequent feature of the antibiotic syndrome, and I regard it as relatively easy to cure, not many sufferers of this disease seem to be interested in this natural approach.
Other autoimmune diseases that have so far been linked to dysbiosis are psoriasis, lupuserythematosusand pancreatitis. When remedies are given that bind bacterialendotoxins, these conditions usually improve. A further consequence of dysbiosis is susceptibility to food poisoning as with salmonellabacteria, while a healthy intestinal flora prevents these from multiplying and causing trouble.
Staphylococcusaureusor golden staph cause serious infections in hospital patients. It has been found that not
only golden staph but also other infections are greatlypotentizedwhen they occur with a Candida overgrowth. As Candida overgrowth is a natural outcome of the standard hospital treatment, it is easy to see why golden staph is so deadly in hospitals.
A similar picture emerges with AIDS. People do not die from the AIDS virus but from Candida-potentizedbacterial infections. I also see the antibiotic-induced dysbiosis in babies and infants as the main cause of their frequent infections, glue ear and greatly contributing to cot death.
While it used to be uncommon for children to have more than one or two infections a year, now more than six is the norm.
In the
1940s Candida was found in only three per cent of autopsies, now the figure is nearer thirty per cent. There are, of course, other factors that can cause dysbiosis - the contraceptive pill, steroids and other drugs, radiation treatment and chemotherapy - but the main culprits are, without doubt, antibiotics.
Closely related to Candida are themycoplasmsorpleomorphicorganisms. These have been shown to be a main factor in the causation of cancer.
Therefore, antifungal therapy has also major benefits in cancer treatment.
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