Candida, My Childhood, and 5 Causes of Gut Dysbiosis (Imbalance)
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After writing “The Beginning of My Sugar-Free Life”, I realized that to tell more of the story, I really needed to back up a bit.
The issue of candida and my troubles with sugars really began way before my teen and childhood years, even.
Here is what I think happened.
I was born when things were really changing regarding the American lifestyle and diet.
And there are 5 things that I think set me up for health problems:
5 Causes of Intestinal Dysbiosis
1. Insufficient Breastfeeding
I was an active La Leche League member throughout the time that I nursed my sons. LLL is a super support network for ladies trying to nourish their babies in the best way possible. Physically and emotionally.
You can imagine how I felt when I found out that my mom had only nursed me for a short amount of time.
How short?
I still remember the day when I was looking through my “baby memories” and I found the pediatrician's prescription for “Borden's canned evaporated milk” to be fed to me at 3 months of age.
Borden's. Gross.
Maybe Borden had a contract with the AMA :(.
2. Fake Food
During my mother's childhood, things were changing in the American diet–and it wasn't for the better.
I remember my mother telling me that when she was young, they would get margarine delivered to their homes.
The fake fat was in a bag that had yellow “goo” in it. They would squeeze and massage the bag in their hands to distribute the artificial yellow color throughout the artificial fat.
Yum, huh?
White flour (nothing more than grains with the healthy germ and bran removed, and sometimes with vitamins added), white sugar (calories with absolutely no nutrition added), artificial colors, trans-fats, artificial flavors.
You name it. Our food was becoming non-food packaged junk.
Anyone else grow up on Bisquick, American “Cheese”, quick bread mixes and more?
3. Antibiotics
Pretty much every time I was sick my mom went to the doctor and asked for antibiotics. Cold–flu–again, you name it.
I wish the doctor would've said no at least every once in awhile.
But I guess doctors thought they were doing the right thing. Could that really be true? Didn't they know there are good bacteria in the gut that shouldn't be assaulted over and over again?
I avoid antibiotics almost like the plague these days.
Because you want those antibiotics to work if you ever really really need them. Like MRSA and those other big infections.
You can read here how our family Avoided Antibiotics for a Sinus Infection.
Please–try to not take advantage of those “free antibiotics,” unless you really need 'em, K?
4. Toxins
We all know that our environment has become more and more toxic.
I'd never thought of it before, but it really appears that toxins affect gut health.
One of the toxins I was exposed to a lot in my childhood was cigarette smoke.
My parents smoked. A lot. I have memories of being in our small black Ford Mustang with the windows up while they enjoyed their cigarettes.
I would beg for them to open the window and they'd open them.
A little.
It was never enough.
To this day cigarette smoke is one of the most disgusting smells to me.
I always suspected the smoke had done more damage to me than just to my lungs. Here is evidence that it likely contributes to an unhealthy gut. As if the lung damage wasn't enough, huh?
For more on toxins, check out “Could You Have Heavy Metal Toxicity and Not Know It?”
5. Stress
We all know stress is bad.
Well, we had a lot of it in our home.
I won't share all of the details here, but my childhood home wasn't a happy one.
You read a lot these days about antibiotics and sugar being the big issues that cause intestinal dysbiosis (a bad balance of good and bad bacteria), but stress is also a cause. (Source)
Conclusion
To be clear, I am not sharing this as a complaint against my parents. They had a lot of reasons for doing what they did (including professionals who told them what to do), and we all need grace.
I just thought I should share more about my childhood and the causes of intestinal dysbiosis so that you could know more about my situation and hopefully could prevent the same problems in your family.
And again, I am not a doctor or a medical professional. I am relating my experience just to share them with you. You shouldn't change your diet or any exercise program, or take supplements without consulting your physician, OK :)?
For an interesting read on food and gut dysbiosis (and one theory about how to heal it), check out the wildly popular Gut and Psychology Syndrome. I'll be sharing more about my journey later.
For more, read Busting a Popular Gut Health Myth.
Got another “cause” to add? Or a “fake food” memory?
hi Adrienne, again your story is similar to mine… but I was in Brazil not in America.
I had lots of ear infections as a kid and had to get my tonsils out. I remember as a kid going to Grandma’s house in the summer and during that month instead of water we drank soda. My Grandfather would fill up a refrigerator with soda and we children ran and played all day (in a city like New Orleans hot and humid) and when we were thirsty we would stop by the ice box and drink soda instead of water. By the end of the month, the outfits my Mom had brought for us to wear for Christmas were too tight on us. No kidding!! I probably gained 10 – 15 pounds in a month, drinking soda and eating white bread and butter as snack/ dinner.
My Dad also smoked… and later on in my early 20s so did I. And yes, life was stressful.. we didn’t know Jesus and had some family issues too. (who doesn’t really???)
My back teeth are filled with metal from fillings. I don’t remember my Mom EVER brushing my teeth. I did…but how well does a kid brush their own teeth??
Also not complaining about my parents…but all those things have made me a more conscious parent. I have breastfeed ALL my kids. I am still breastfeed my 3 y.o. How do I get her off????? LOL
None of my kids have ever had an ear infection or had antibiotics. They don’t know what margarine is… and I have in the last few years been cooking more whole and healthy foods.
My oldest kids (10 and 7 y.o.) got their beautiful new front teeth covered in white stains. I think it’s fluorisis. I am so upset that I missed that. Now we don’t brush with toothpaste with fluoride, but how can you avoid it if our water is laden with it. I filter the water we drink, but we have a pool and little ones are notorious to drink water as they swim. What to do??
As Moms, we are constantly trying to do right by our kids, but we will miss something or do wrong. We live in a fallen world and unfortunately it’s contaminated by sin.
Anyway, this is a great post. Keep on illuminating other Moms. 🙂
Thanks, as always!!! It is for sure a fallen world. Sometimes more than we know.
I actually remember those packages of margarine with the yellow dye! (Why didn’t anyone just think to NOT add it?). It was because by law, only butter could be yellow on its own–they wanted people to be aware that margarine was NOT butter. Hmm, maybe they should go back to those packets–? 😉
Really – that’s why? Because they wanted folks to think they were getting something healthy? My kids both said “yuck” when they were reading the post today. :).
Thank you for sharing on this subject. I am at the beginning of my journey of understanding candida. I have it and I am trying to make better food choices. I am happy to know that you will be sharing more information.
Thanks. I wish I had known more a lot earlier.
I am currently developing a product that will be available in about a month to make it possible to completely anaerobically culture vegetables at home, creating healthy probiotic food at home for pennies on the dollar for the express purpose of turning around “gut disbyosis.” I have, too, have nearly had my health destroyed by Candida, and have made greater strides using cultured foods with this system.
The website is completely under development, but bookmark us and come back! We’re all about helping people find ways to recover health and save money!
Thanks for sharing. I have seen products like that.
There are many culturing products on the market that have unsafe plastics and rubbers in them. I have discovered that key parts have to be manufactured specifically for us to be food grade. It’s been very time-consuming and expensive, but I believe it will be worth it!
Cultured foods are key to a lifestyle free of Candida! Thank you for posting my site!
I don’t know enough about all of the fermenting yet, but could you tell me what your black gaskets are made of and if the jars you’re using are certified hermetic? Thanks.
Hi again, Karen. Two more questions for you. When are your jars going to be available and do they differ from Pickl-It at all? Like I said, I don’t know much but that is one brand I’ve seen that yours look like. I have only tried fermenting foods once and it wasn’t that successful. I have a lot to learn.
Hi Adrienne,
Super busy here, and apologize for making you wait. Our jars are hermetically sealing, and they do differ from Pickl-Its in a few significant ways that I’m not ready to talk about yet: Pickl-It is a very good product, and the first of it’s kind, and I’m not willing to talk about the differences in a way that sounds like I’m trying to put it down. I decided to develop a system and make a few improvements mostly because it became apparent that they are unable to keep up with orders, and teaching and promoting lacto-fermentation is too important to me.
Our grommets are made from FDA NSF-61 Food Grade Silicone, and the glass is Bormioli Rocco Fido ~ Italian lead free food jars. Nothing less than than the most resistant safe materials should be coming into contact with the acidic (but magically alkalizing) fermented foods.
With the right fermenting system, and good quality food, you are nearly certain of success. I’m so excited I can hardly wait! We expect to start shipping our pre-orders the first week of April, and we’re working hard to jump over the hurdles ahead of us to meet that goal.
I’m very interested in finding other people who are willing to learn, and teach this art. It’s not that hard, and most people are tentative about it: we’ve grown up in a society where we sterilize everything for “safety”, and learning from someone who has done it successfully is so helpful. I will have a “reseller” link on my site, inviting those willing to teach into an opportunity to earn an additional income to take on this important mission.
Thank you again for posting my link!
Thanks. Looks good. Are you familiar with Pickl-It. And if so, how do your jars differ? Thanks again!
The only difference I can discuss at this time is the Submersion Bowl. It is designed to not only hold down the food under the brine, but to also reduce the surface area of the brine that is exposed to oxygen (until carbon dioxide replaces the oxygen) further reducing the risk of spoilage early in the fermenting process. It also has a small bottom, allowing the bubbles to escape up the side and out of the brine, instead of holding them under until they are large enough to burst out.
The other differences I simply cannot discuss until unveiling when we’re ready to ship. Until I’m sure it’s going to work out the way we expect! I’m sure you’ll understand! I’m not even supposed to be talking about the product until we’re ready to unveil! 🙂
Check. Check. Check. I share each of these issues from the past + two more that I am sure were major contributors to my lifelong health-related issues: I suffered from a serious case of thrush from birth until I was a few months old and when I was 6 years old, I was bit by a stray dog and wound up with a 2-week regiment of rabies shots in my tummy (one each day). I know my immature system couldn’t have handled all that poison and must have stored it away, likely causing liver issues. I remember as a child my favorite foods were Cheetos and macaroni and cheese. I think about all the people who die without ever realizing how their upbringing, food choices, and lifestyles lead to their health crisis. Truly we are blessed to be on the right path. Thank you for sharing your story!
Thanks for sharing. Wow – rabies. That’s a tough one. It’s hard isn’t it, to think about that? Harder still for me to tell people how they could change but they won’t listen. Well, I wouldn’t listen about the sugar at first either.
An interesting read Adrienne!
I’ve come to the conclusion that all but #1 (and who knows – maybe that too! I’m old enough that, when I was born – 1957 – very, very few women breastfed their babies)are tied into my having fibromyalgia and severe arthritis.
Addressing #’s 2-5 and making positive changes has definitely made my illnesses more manageable!
Wow. You will be very interested in the upcoming adrenal and heavy metals posts. :).
I’m right there with ya! All of that and then some. Foods I remember: Toaster Struedals, Canned Soup, instant hot chocolate, krispy kreme donuts, super-thin processed Ham, Ho Hos. But, I also remember home-made chicken soup, lots of bacon, real butter, steak, fresh seafood from our boat, fresh veggies from our garden like tomatos, green beans, zuch, squash, etc.
Oh how funny…Toaster Strudels. We had Thomas’ corn cakes and my husband had those Buddig sliced meats. We had real food for dinners. I think breakfast and lunch and snacks were the worst offenders.
Your story sounds identical to mine. Oh and yes the American cheese on wonder white bread with miracle whip! That’s how my mom did it. The one thing my mom never caved on was butter. We always had real butter but boxed potatoes, boxed pasta, boxed cakes etc.
Thank you for sharing your story. For the most part our parents did what they thought was best. We all live and learn.
We didn’t have Miracle Whip. Guess that’s a small miracle, eh? Yuck. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for this. I had all of these factors present in my upbringing as well. Additionally, I think both of my parents had imbalances which they passed on to me, and I wish I had known before last year that The Pill is given credit by many for disrupting gut health as well. I may have skipped the 15+ years I took it in my teens and 20s, and I might not have the problems I do now. Fortunately, all of this knowleadge also comes with information on how to heal, and I hope I can pass this empowermewnt on to my children.
So funny you mentioned that. I was going to write about that. I am sure that they are passed down. Maybe for my next post? I have more thoughts and experiences. The pill is another one – at least that’s one I didn’t have affect me. Thanks!!
Please do write more about this topic, because it is epidemic. As I said before, if I had had some of the information I had then that I have now, I may have made many different choices and been so much better equipped to take care of my health than I was. I trust that things have evolved for me just as they have needed to, but I wouldn’t hesitate to share what I know now with anyone who is interested.
More to come. It is epidemic. I don’t think docs know enough about it — or what to do about it.
I could have written this post. So familiar a story. I did write about the stress in my house growing up (https://www.sandiratch.blogspot.ca/2010/11/great-depression-part-one.html) – not to blame my parents, either, they are great people. But the times were different and there were complicating factors. I hate how we ate in the 1970s and 1980s. Every day when I came home for lunch I had a grilled cheese sandwich (processed cheese food on white bread with margarine), vanilla ice cream and chocolate chip cookies (made with white flour and Crisco). I think of it now and can’t imagine how I survived it. Still working on eating better. It’s a daily struggle.
Ick. I forgot about that American Cheese. And nut bread mix. And Bisquick. I should go add that…..
Boy, this does bring back memories. Miracle whip, Crisco, Margarine, canned soups for every casserole imaginable. Our dear parents truly didn’t know any better. The internet has it’s down-sides, but what a blessing to be able to have so much information at our finger tips and the ability to research what is best for our families.
I sooo agree with you. Daily I wonder about if it makes sense to blog but then when I get emails like this where people share how crucial it is–or from folks saying how much they needed this information, if makes sense to keep doing it. It is so hard to get good info on this stuff and some of these things are truly life changing when you can get the info you need for yourself and/or your family. Blessings. Love the beeswax candle idea. Are they really easy? I need easy :).
Don’t forget “Lipton Onion Soup Mix” and “Wylers or Knorr’s boullion cubes” which was put in every pot roast I think we ever made. That was one of the first things I had to quit doing when I found out I didn’t do well with MSG.