According to statistics, every second woman faces the symptoms of candidiasis. So why does this unpleasant disease appear and how can you prevent further recurrences?
Candidiasis is also called a vaginal thrush. This is one of the fungal infections which occur on the background of some other health problems. Until the underlying problems are eliminated completely the unpleasant symptoms of the yeast infection can reappear again and again, even if the treatment has been chosen correctly. Moreover, the disease is caused not by just one type of fungus, but by a wide variety of fungi of the candida genus (there are about 155 species). The most common are the candidaalbicans. A conventional medical test for candidiasis reveals the presence of precisely this type of fungi. Small amounts of them might always be present in the body. However, the unpleasant symptoms appear only when their number increases significantly. And if a chronic yeast infection starts, you will have to deal with this condition more thoroughly. So what are the factors that wiil most likely lead to candidiasis?
Diet
The food you eat, especially sweets and an excess of pastries and starchy foods might change the acidity level in your vagina. Incorrect diet first leads to issues with gastrointestinal tract. Then microflora of your intestines changes and after that disbacteriosis develops, followed by candidiasis. That’s why besides taking treatment you need to limit the amount of sweets, salted and smoked food and follow a specific diet.
Hormones
If the candidiasis condition worsens during the second part of your menses cycle, it means that the cause of your condition most probably lies in your hormones. The thing is that the level of progesterone rises after ovulation and consequently lowers general immunity of your body. The same thing might also happen during pregnancy. The microflora in your vagina changes and the candida yeast get an opportunity to increase their activity. Oral contraceptives have a similar effect on the immune system. If a woman is absolutely healthy, she wouldn’t even notice any changes. But if any chronic illness hides in her body, use of the oral contraceptives might give a start to candidiasis activity. Besides, candidiasis flare might be caused by some endocrine disorders, for instance, diabetis.
Antibiotics
They remove not just the disease bacteria, but also a useful miscroflora: namely lactobacteria living in your intestines and vagina. These microbes control the growth of the candid yeast in your body. If the number of lactobacteria in your body is insufficient, the disease causing yeast starts actively multiplying. Antibiotics lower immune system activity which might also lead to appearance of candidiasis.
Incorrect Treatment
Candidiasis might often flare up after a sexual intercourse. In this case the condition is a result of a microflora exchange. Men might sometimes be carriers of the yeasts and be unaware of it. That’s why a woman might repeatedly try to cure candidiasis, but still experience returns of it’s symptoms if her partner does not take any treatment.
“Each woman should have a prophylactic examination by a gynecologist and do a smear test at least once a year. Besides, you should immediately visit a doctor if you have any of the following complaints: itching, burning or unpleasant discharge. It might turn out that the illness that a woman considers to be candidiasis might be something else entirely. So she should not use self-treatment under any condition.”
Larisa Ivanova
Herpes
If herpes virus lives in your body, it stays inactive most of the time. It can become active if your body’s immune system weakens. Then candidiasis might appear. If you leave herpes untreated, candidiasis will reappear time and time again, even in case of an insignificant cold.
