INTRO: Candida is a major gut health hot topic - On a recent IG post Christa did, the topic got enough attention for us at Less Stressed Life to take the plunge and give more detail and address your burning candida questions.   According to the American Thoracic Society, “Candida is the single most important cause of fungal infections worldwide and The CDC recognizes, "Vaginal candidiasis is common. In the United States, it is the second most common type of vaginal infection after bacterial vaginal infections. An estimated 1.4 million outpatient visits for vaginal candidiasis occur annually in the United States." "Over 75% of women will get a yeast infection in their life and many of those will have reoccurring infections” KEY TAKEAWAYS: Candida is a type of fungus a common part of the normal flora in the digestive tract, but when the immune system is weakened for one reason or another, Candida has the opportunity to grow out of control and wreak havoc on almost all aspects of your body. Candida overgrowth can cause a variety of adverse symptoms.  Some you may be familiar with such as: Diarrhea, constipation, gas, fatigue, skin rashes, muscle and joint pain, allergies, yeast infections, thrush/white coated tongue, jock itchTesting can be a challenge, important to assess symptoms as wellEasy to reinfect⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Must address root cause-Chronic stress and inflammation, Low stomach acid, overuse of antibiotics killing off good GI flora, diet, H Pylori and other organisms that may house fungus.Mold Candida connectionTargeted protocol necessary for treatment to avoid relapse⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ GUEST SHARED HELPFUL TIPS: Identifying root causes for candida overgrowthTreatment- old school vs new school approachesHow a patient feels Importance of a balanced microbiome MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:  Statistics | Invasive Candidiasis | Candidiasis | Types of Diseases | Fungal Diseases | CDC https://www.thoracic.org/patients/patient-resources/resources/candidemia.pdf WHERE TO FIND CHRISTA AND THE LESS STRESSED LIFE TEAM: Personalized functional medicine with Christa Biegler: http://www.lessstressednutrition.com Less Stressed Life Podcast: http://www.lessstressedlife.com Less Stressed Life Facebook Page: https://www.fb.me/christabieglerrd/ On IG: @anti.inflammatory.nutritionist Shop our Favorites christabiegler.com/shop