Your diet journey started with a health issue known as Candida. What is it and what are the symptoms?
Candida albicans is a type of yeast that we all have on our bodies and in our gut. When this pathogen increases, our good bacteria decreases and immune response becomes depressed. Unknowingly, we are feeding Candida when we eat foods made with flour, yeast and especially sugar! My symptoms included lethargy, severe PMS and menstrual cramps, and depression. Symptoms can also include chronic diarrhea, bladder infections, migraines, yeast infection or athletes foot. Candida does not discriminate. Both women and men have it.
Your book goes into depth about your own food sensitivities. Were you shocked to learn you had developed these later in life?
Yes, absolutely! I had no idea that the feelings of lethargy and depression were being fuelled by food sensitivities. I had to remove wheat, gluten, sugar, yeast, sulphites, vinegars, coffee and oats. It was shocking because I was eating on the go, and many prepared foods contain at least one of these ingredients, if not all of them! Interestingly enough, many of us seem to develop food sensitivities later in life, and wheat tends to be very problematic for a lot of people. It's important to get tested for food sensitivities if you feel excessively tired or bloated to remove offending foods. Once I cleaned up my diet, I lost 40 pounds effortlessly!
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