With going au naturelle being a proven path in medicinal cures, natural remedies for Candida may be the answer to your vaginal infection woes. And since they are natural, they are easily accessible to anyone with common sense, self discipline, and the luck to get out of stressful situations and polluted environments.

Although Candida albicans, the specific class of Candida that causes yeast infection, is present in our bodies, they live at relatively harmless states. That is, until they multiply and their growth is beyond our system’s control. It is at this stage that they become a disease.

Fungi, being highly communicable, make yeast infection fairly common. All the more is it extra likely to manifest in women in the form of vaginal infection. This is due to the fact that the female’s reproductive organ’s anatomical structure (wow, that’s a mouthful!) encourages moisture buildup that subsequently leads to the escalation in the growth of Candida. Furthermore, women go through hormonal changes at least once a month. The resultant rise and fall in the acidity level of the genitals promotes the growth of these microorganisms. Additionally, with the monthly period comes the issue of hygiene: during menstruation, the demands to keep the body clean are much more pertinent. Failure to do so may not only lead to vanginitis (or inflammation of that region) but to other illnesses as well, such as urinary tract infection or UTI. Although these all sounds highly technical, all it means is the women’s genitalia can harbor more germs than men as they provide better conditions for its growth. Talk about tough luck!

What then are the possible natural remedies for Candida? One of the simplest, albeit also the hardest, way is to keep one’s self fit and strong. Our bodies have been innately built to withstand external elements that can harm it. As with the “survival of the fittest” concept, each of us is wired to fight off infection to preserve our existence. Thus, our immune systems are naturally capable of regulating potentially dangerous microbes like the Candida. But as with the fashion police, some miscreants are still bound to slip up (take for instance Bjork, who is now an icon every Golden Globe awards). Some people likewise have malfunctioning immune systems, and so other means should be sought.

We then go to the next natural thing: our diets. There is a saying that goes, “You are what you eat”. So are you a pig or a nut? Kidding aside, experts agree that the presence of certain mineral deposits can increase fungal population. One such mineral is fructose, a.k.a. sugar. A high fructose diet can lead to a number of illnesses, not just yeast infection, but something worse as in diabetes mellitus. On the other hand, certain substances can inhibit the growth of hazardous microbes. Cranberry juice is one of these. Cranberry juice is popularly accepted as a natural product that fights infection. Obstetricians even recommend it to pregnant women to prevent them from vaginal and urinary tract infections. Now that is more reason to drink up!

Another thing to consider is our lifestyle, more specifically our relationships. Promiscuity promotes pathogens; irresponsibility, illnesses. If sticking to one partner throughout your lifestyle seems to be a candidate for Mission Impossible, then at least think “safety” in every encounter. As one line in the movie starring Cuba Gooding goes, “You might be happy for a night, but syphilis lasts a lifetime”. Same with most infections, the momentary bliss may lead to endless. Aren’t we thankful science has come up with most of the cures?

In a nutshell, curing yeast infections is as natural as having the fungi in our bodies. All we need to do is to use our heads, wash our hands, and keep ourselves healthy.