If you are depressed while you suffer from regular yeast infections, or athlete’s foot or have taken antibiotics recently, there is a connection. Our brains are inextricably tied to our gastrointestinal tract and our mental well being is dependent on healthy intestines. Depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety, and a host of other mental illness from autism to ADHD can be caused by an imbalance of gut microbes like fungi, and “bad” bacteria.
Candida is the opportunistic flora that typically takes over our colon with conventional diets. Along with it comes other fungi, harmful bacteria, and parasites. An intestinal system infected with this kind of ecosystem cannot process and assimilate many of the vitamins we need, like B vitamins, which are imperative for brain function and found to be low (especially B6) in virtually anyone experiencing depression. Candida also breaks down the intestinal wall and leeches into the bloodstream, allowing other toxic byproducts to leak from the colon to the bloodstream.
Much of the body’s hormone production occurs in the intestinal tract. 90 to 95% of our serotonin, the key neurotransmitter responsible for regulating mood, is produced inside our intestines. When the candida population reaches a certain point, it suppresses the production of neurotransmitters such as serotonin. A lack of serotonin leads to depression, anxiety, and other mental health problems.
Acetaldehyde, a byproduct of yeast (candida), also reacts with the dopamine neurotransmitter, which can cause mental problems such as anxiety, depression, poor concentration, and feeling spaced-out.
Candida impairs the liver’s ability to store vitamin B12. We don’t need much B12, but if we are low, depression and other more serious mental issues well develop quickly.
The byproducts of candida’s metabolism are toxic to us. Candida goes through the bloodstream and finds other areas of the body to make home in, invading everywhere it can and making detoxifying the blood every difficult for the body. The blood becomes sluggish with diminished regenerative capacities, and the body begins to age, ache, and develop allergies and then autoimmune issues, which all lead to and fuel depression.
It’s rare to find a person who suffers from depression and does not suffer from an overgrowth of candida. On the other hand, it’s rare to find a person in our modern culture that does not suffer from an overabundance of candida. That said, it’s very difficult to improve one’s mindset without a healthy mind. And you cannot have a healthy mind without a healthy colon.
Poor colon health does lead to poor brain health, as well as poor health within the rest of the body. For almost every major disease, both physical and mental, one of the most important things you can do, and the first thing that should be done, is to improve the health of the intestinal tract by killing excess candida and balancing the gut flora. A great way to do this is with thorough detoxification. Also see Natural Remedies for Depression and Leaky Gut & Candida. See the first source for more on detoxifying. We recommend a high-quality probiotic and SF722 along with a healthy, whole-food diet to kill Candida quickly.
Recommended Supplements:
- Floramind-Prime by Thorne
- Shillington’s Intestinal Cleanse
- Formula SF722
- MicroDefense – Pure Encapsulations
- B-Complex #6 – Thorne Research
- Vitamin D – Thorn Complex
- Krill Oil
- Shillintong’s Total Nutrition Formula
Further Reading:
- I’m Depressed
- How To Be Happy
- Natural Remedies for Depression
- How to Kill Candida and Balance Your Inner Ecosystem
- How to Cure Candida
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