[Eric_C]

I've been meaning to post this for a few weeks now.


First off this is my story of what happens with me. It may not be what happens with you however I am meticulous in tracking things and for a living I design solutions to problems so over the past years I've come to a conclusion on why even after giving up Gluten I had my ups and downs. The last piece of information came to be purely by chance. I can re-produce my symptoms at will, and get rid of them just the same. There were always some missing pieces but I finally think I've solved them.

I thought gluten was the source of all my problems but it wasn't. It was the catalyst to them, and the root cause of the problem but yeast turned out to be the main ongoing issue I've had.

I lived with a series of major problems for close to a year, and then on again/off again major/minor problems for two years after that. I now believe I could have made that all go away in a week or two.

This is going to be very long but I've found that in reading other people's posts I pick out bits and pieces that helped me put all this together.

So here is where it started:

New Years Eve 2005. I had severe lower back pains for about 2 months. I woke up with night sweats and generally felt like crap. This was before going gluten-free. I went to the doctor and he prescribed me Cipro as a precaution for a UTI/kidney infection just in case before the test results came back. I've posted my story about Cipro before but now think the outcome was not 100 percent from Cipro although I'd never take the drug again.

NYE night I spent in the hospital with difficulty breathing, some difficulty with vision, an uncontrollable shaking of my hands and arms. For the next 6 months I had these symptoms along with a constant tension all over. I couldn't sleep, I had panic attacks, anxiety...anytime I closed my eyes my muscles in my head/neck would shake. A seriously bad time for me.

As time went on I discovered if I ate a low glucose index diet that very very slowly things improved. By the time summer rolled around I would have said I was 80 percent. This is the time I discovered gluten being a trigger for my problems and I had reduced my gluten intake but not gotten rid of it.

End of summer 06 I was 85-90 percent, up and down. Then it got worse near the end of summer. I had started to work out and problems returned, mostly the shaking of the hands and problems with anxiety.

October '07 it all went in the crapper again. Extreme anxiety, shaking, no sleep, could not concentrate. I then looked at sunlight exposure and both D3 and B12 being issues. I left lights on at home, left lights on at work(I normally worked in a dimly lit area) and this is around the time I severaly cut back on gluten.

I was still eating low GI and it was a LONG process for me to get back to normal. Thanksgiving hit in 07 and it got really bad. I've heard all the stories about winter blues, holiday anxiety, etc...now I know it was the food. Eating low GI meant not much in the way of sugar but Thanksgiving was all carbs, tons of them.

Same with Christmas and it sent me spiraling down. New problems cropped up. Numb/coldness in the legs and hands. General neuropathy that moved all over the place. Thats when I cut out gluten completely.

Neuropathy came and went for no reason that I could see.

Starting in summer of 08 I got 'better'....gave up gluten and plenty of posts on here about how I was 'cured' finally. Anxiety was gone but still popped up when I ate gluten for 1-2 weeks then back to normal.

Throughout all this hypoglycemia was a huge issue for me. When the tension and anxiety hit right after a glutening I'd eat every 2-3 hours, keep my blood sugar as level as possible. I could go from 140 to 60 in 20 minutes for 3 days straight, then on the 4th day POOF, I could eat a candy store and be rock solid at 100.

It did not make sense. In the middle of this I had to take an anti-biotic and it put me back where Cipro did, not as bad but I also knew it would pass because I was gluten-free and withing a week or two it did. I had taken anti-biotic 2 months before and had zero problems. When I took it the second time I was off my sugar free kick and eating sugar.

Last time it really hit me was last April. I was feeling fantastic then all of a sudden it all came back. Anxiety, neuropathy, hypoglycemia. I got through my 'normal' 4-5 days of hypoglycemia and was able to have sugar again.

The strange thing was, my problems got worse when I gave up sugar. I'd have 5-6 great weeks being sugar free, then it'd all fall apart. Felt better after a week but drinking pop suddenly made me feel great so I'd get on a pop kick and be fine for 3-4 months then say its time to give it up and get back to water and tea....2-3 months went by, back down again.

After the last round I started to look into other problems and found Yeast. I was in the middle of a massive reaction to gluten and started to take Candex. It was like a miracle pill. In 3 days I was fine, continued to take it for 3 weeks and problem free.

Now the anxiety would come back after eating pickles(vinegar) and bread, we had found a great gluten-free bread but I ran into issues after eating it but only if I didn't have sugar, if I was drinking pop I felt OK.

So here is what I've come up with. Yeast growth has been my problem. When I took Cipro it knocked me completely out of whack and yeast grew wild. My mix of continued gluten but low GI allowed it to continue to grow and made me very sick. The low carb diet meant it slowly went away over time.

When I worked out my body wanted more carbs than what was there because the yeast was digesting so many.

When I went gluten-free the yeast problem went down but when it flairs up I do not take in enough carbs to satifsy my body and the yeast, the yeast takes too much and I 'starve' myself.

Drinking pop gives me so much carbs that there is enough for the yeast and enough for my body. I always wondered why when I drink pop I only gain 1-2lbs.

The yeast was causing my neuropathy, it was causing the hypoglycemia once it got past a certain growth stage.

A glutening sets off the yeast overgrowth and gives me my symptoms.

My symptoms first went away because I cut down on carbs but it took months to do so.

I just had this happen and I've been on 4 Candex pills a day. Now that I've stuck with them evertyhing has gone away. I used to have this lingering pounding heart feeling, high blood pressure, and I'd wake up with either of my arms with neuropathy symptoms, mostly falling asleep and tinglng feels not to mention massive muslce tension and strain.

I now figure that if I had known about the yeast at teh start I could have ridded myself of those symptoms after the Cipro in a short period of time.

I went to an allergist because of my reaction to pickles...and to cilantro but now I figured the cilantro was because I only have Cilantro with high carb meals which set off the yeast growth again.

Took the Candex, no reaction to pickles or anything else now.

I really shortened this from notes but I'll post up a complete list of symptoms that went away after taking the yeast pills.

[Wolicki]

Eric_C, on Oct 14 2009, 09:55 PM, said:

I've been meaning to post this for a few weeks now.


First off this is my story of what happens with me. It may not be what happens with you however I am meticulous in tracking things and for a living I design solutions to problems so over the past years I've come to a conclusion on why even after giving up Gluten I had my ups and downs. The last piece of information came to be purely by chance. I can re-produce my symptoms at will, and get rid of them just the same. There were always some missing pieces but I finally think I've solved them.

I thought gluten was the source of all my problems but it wasn't. It was the catalyst to them, and the root cause of the problem but yeast turned out to be the main ongoing issue I've had.

I lived with a series of major problems for close to a year, and then on again/off again major/minor problems for two years after that. I now believe I could have made that all go away in a week or two.

This is going to be very long but I've found that in reading other people's posts I pick out bits and pieces that helped me put all this together.

So here is where it started:

New Years Eve 2005. I had severe lower back pains for about 2 months. I woke up with night sweats and generally felt like crap. This was before going gluten-free. I went to the doctor and he prescribed me Cipro as a precaution for a UTI/kidney infection just in case before the test results came back. I've posted my story about Cipro before but now think the outcome was not 100 percent from Cipro although I'd never take the drug again.

NYE night I spent in the hospital with difficulty breathing, some difficulty with vision, an uncontrollable shaking of my hands and arms. For the next 6 months I had these symptoms along with a constant tension all over. I couldn't sleep, I had panic attacks, anxiety...anytime I closed my eyes my muscles in my head/neck would shake. A seriously bad time for me.

As time went on I discovered if I ate a low glucose index diet that very very slowly things improved. By the time summer rolled around I would have said I was 80 percent. This is the time I discovered gluten being a trigger for my problems and I had reduced my gluten intake but not gotten rid of it.

End of summer 06 I was 85-90 percent, up and down. Then it got worse near the end of summer. I had started to work out and problems returned, mostly the shaking of the hands and problems with anxiety.

October '07 it all went in the crapper again. Extreme anxiety, shaking, no sleep, could not concentrate. I then looked at sunlight exposure and both D3 and B12 being issues. I left lights on at home, left lights on at work(I normally worked in a dimly lit area) and this is around the time I severaly cut back on gluten.

I was still eating low GI and it was a LONG process for me to get back to normal. Thanksgiving hit in 07 and it got really bad. I've heard all the stories about winter blues, holiday anxiety, etc...now I know it was the food. Eating low GI meant not much in the way of sugar but Thanksgiving was all carbs, tons of them.

Same with Christmas and it sent me spiraling down. New problems cropped up. Numb/coldness in the legs and hands. General neuropathy that moved all over the place. Thats when I cut out gluten completely.

Neuropathy came and went for no reason that I could see.

Starting in summer of 08 I got 'better'....gave up gluten and plenty of posts on here about how I was 'cured' finally. Anxiety was gone but still popped up when I ate gluten for 1-2 weeks then back to normal.

Throughout all this hypoglycemia was a huge issue for me. When the tension and anxiety hit right after a glutening I'd eat every 2-3 hours, keep my blood sugar as level as possible. I could go from 140 to 60 in 20 minutes for 3 days straight, then on the 4th day POOF, I could eat a candy store and be rock solid at 100.

It did not make sense. In the middle of this I had to take an anti-biotic and it put me back where Cipro did, not as bad but I also knew it would pass because I was gluten-free and withing a week or two it did. I had taken anti-biotic 2 months before and had zero problems. When I took it the second time I was off my sugar free kick and eating sugar.

Last time it really hit me was last April. I was feeling fantastic then all of a sudden it all came back. Anxiety, neuropathy, hypoglycemia. I got through my 'normal' 4-5 days of hypoglycemia and was able to have sugar again.

The strange thing was, my problems got worse when I gave up sugar. I'd have 5-6 great weeks being sugar free, then it'd all fall apart. Felt better after a week but drinking pop suddenly made me feel great so I'd get on a pop kick and be fine for 3-4 months then say its time to give it up and get back to water and tea....2-3 months went by, back down again.

After the last round I started to look into other problems and found Yeast. I was in the middle of a massive reaction to gluten and started to take Candex. It was like a miracle pill. In 3 days I was fine, continued to take it for 3 weeks and problem free.

Now the anxiety would come back after eating pickles(vinegar) and bread, we had found a great gluten-free bread but I ran into issues after eating it but only if I didn't have sugar, if I was drinking pop I felt OK.

So here is what I've come up with. Yeast growth has been my problem. When I took Cipro it knocked me completely out of whack and yeast grew wild. My mix of continued gluten but low GI allowed it to continue to grow and made me very sick. The low carb diet meant it slowly went away over time.

When I worked out my body wanted more carbs than what was there because the yeast was digesting so many.

When I went gluten-free the yeast problem went down but when it flairs up I do not take in enough carbs to satifsy my body and the yeast, the yeast takes too much and I 'starve' myself.

Drinking pop gives me so much carbs that there is enough for the yeast and enough for my body. I always wondered why when I drink pop I only gain 1-2lbs.

The yeast was causing my neuropathy, it was causing the hypoglycemia once it got past a certain growth stage.

A glutening sets off the yeast overgrowth and gives me my symptoms.

My symptoms first went away because I cut down on carbs but it took months to do so.

I just had this happen and I've been on 4 Candex pills a day. Now that I've stuck with them evertyhing has gone away. I used to have this lingering pounding heart feeling, high blood pressure, and I'd wake up with either of my arms with neuropathy symptoms, mostly falling asleep and tinglng feels not to mention massive muslce tension and strain.

I now figure that if I had known about the yeast at teh start I could have ridded myself of those symptoms after the Cipro in a short period of time.

I went to an allergist because of my reaction to pickles...and to cilantro but now I figured the cilantro was because I only have Cilantro with high carb meals which set off the yeast growth again.

Took the Candex, no reaction to pickles or anything else now.

I really shortened this from notes but I'll post up a complete list of symptoms that went away after taking the yeast pills.

Wow, thank you for posting! I am so glad your are feeling better! Please do post your complete list of symptoms that have gone away. I've got some weird ones, maybe this will help me!

[Eric_C]

Wolicki, on Oct 15 2009, 10:07 AM, said:

Wow, thank you for posting! I am so glad your are feeling better! Please do post your complete list of symptoms that have gone away. I've got some weird ones, maybe this will help me!

I will....between work and being busy it'll take me a day or two.

Some of my are very odd as well Hopefully tongiht I'll have time to gather my thoughts and put the rest down.

[Eric_C]

Here is a list of problems which I think attribute themselves to yeast, and NOT gluten, but glutening is the reason for the yeast and a general inbalance that people with Celiacs have:. These are all symptoms I've had, and ones that have gone away since starting on a yeast treatement

1. Neuropathy. Burning palms, cold legs/feet. Burning sensation in the top of the legs, burning sensation on bottom of feet.
2. Insomnia...just never get tired.
3. VERY light sleep...I dream but its half way between being awake and asleep
4. Dreams...this migth be more gluten and very odd...its like a switch. I dream heavily then with the next glutening, not at all...then back and forth.
5. Incredibly painful burning sensation in the lower back, had MRI/CAT, no nerve problems.
6. A complete lack of rythym. No kidding, I'm a huge music fan and can't keep a beat if I'm having a problem. I get way out of sync.
7. Muscle tension in the neck/head/arms/legs. So bad that I want to run out of my skin.
8. Lack of ability to concentrate, remember, easily frustrated over simple problems
9. Brain fog...a feeling of being stuffy/cold symptoms
10. Planter faciatis....been diagnosed with it, wear supports in my shoes. No yeast/gluten, no symptoms, even the doc is amazed
11. Hypoglycemia
12. High blood pressure, 150/90 versus a steady 3 months of 115/75 to 120/80 back upto 150/90 after yeast.
13. Pounding heart sensation, regardless of BP.
14. Nighttime neuropathy. If I sleep on my side, arm that is under me falls asleep or tingles. Random hands/arms falling asleep
15. Pain similar to thorasic outlet syndrome
16. Memory....again going back to music, hard time remembering lyrics, versus instant recall of every word to every song I've heard
17. Minor muslce shaking...not like I had after teh Cipro but its there
18. EXTREME irritability, that is the first sign.
19. Joint pain in knee's/hands
20. Anxiety and tension brought on my vinegar/high carbs like white rice


There are more...have to go back and compile them all.

I've gone from being a complete physical wreck to being totally fine, then back to bad, then good....now that I seem to have attacked the yeast problem I have stopped the cycle.

More to come but I'd like to hear others thoughts on similar issues.

[elle's mom]

Eric,

Your post has inspired me to look further into yeast, I have wondered about it, but never REALLY kept track of my symptoms. I've never heard of Candex, but I will research it. How long do you have to be on it? What type of doctor did you get this from?

[Eric_C]

No script.

Over the counter, about $50 for a bottle that will last you about 6 weeks if you take 4 per day.

Results were within 2 days and after a full 6 weeks I went down to 2 pills per day.

I've mentioned it to several doctors and none of them had any concerns, its all natural and is not toxic compared to other yeast treatments.

I've read extensively on it, haven't read one negative view on it yet.

ALL of those symptoms have gone away, and stayed away. I stopped taking it and went back to foods that are known to cause yeast issues and they started to come back, back on the Candex, problems went away.

I'm even able to eat those foods that caused issue, I just don't do it 5x's a week.

[Wolicki]

Eric_C, on Oct 15 2009, 07:52 PM, said:

Here is a list of problems which I think attribute themselves to yeast, and NOT gluten, but glutening is the reason for the yeast and a general inbalance that people with Celiacs have:. These are all symptoms I've had, and ones that have gone away since starting on a yeast treatement

1. Neuropathy. Burning palms, cold legs/feet. Burning sensation in the top of the legs, burning sensation on bottom of feet.
2. Insomnia...just never get tired.
3. VERY light sleep...I dream but its half way between being awake and asleep
4. Dreams...this migth be more gluten and very odd...its like a switch. I dream heavily then with the next glutening, not at all...then back and forth.
5. Incredibly painful burning sensation in the lower back, had MRI/CAT, no nerve problems.
6. A complete lack of rythym. No kidding, I'm a huge music fan and can't keep a beat if I'm having a problem. I get way out of sync.
7. Muscle tension in the neck/head/arms/legs. So bad that I want to run out of my skin.
8. Lack of ability to concentrate, remember, easily frustrated over simple problems
9. Brain fog...a feeling of being stuffy/cold symptoms
10. Planter faciatis....been diagnosed with it, wear supports in my shoes. No yeast/gluten, no symptoms, even the doc is amazed
11. Hypoglycemia
12. High blood pressure, 150/90 versus a steady 3 months of 115/75 to 120/80 back upto 150/90 after yeast.
13. Pounding heart sensation, regardless of BP.
14. Nighttime neuropathy. If I sleep on my side, arm that is under me falls asleep or tingles. Random hands/arms falling asleep
15. Pain similar to thorasic outlet syndrome
16. Memory....again going back to music, hard time remembering lyrics, versus instant recall of every word to every song I've heard
17. Minor muslce shaking...not like I had after teh Cipro but its there
18. EXTREME irritability, that is the first sign.
19. Joint pain in knee's/hands
20. Anxiety and tension brought on my vinegar/high carbs like white rice


There are me...have to go back and compile them all.

I've gone from being a complete physical wreck to being totally fine, then back to bad, then good....now that I seem to have attacked the yeast problem I have stopped the cycle.

More to come but I'd like to hear others thoughts on similar issues.

Eric
I have 14 of those 20 symptoms! I am going out to find some Candex today! Your symptoms relieved immediatlly? I am guessing health food store? So you are avaoiding sugar and starch?
Wow thanks so much!

[Eric_C]

Candex worked, for me at least, fairly quickly.

First thing to go was the brain fog/stuffiness feeling. Then over the course of 2 weeks I felt great.

It also has the added benefit of making an accidentical glutening just the stomach issues, no after effects.

I'd be interested to hear your results. I said everyone is different, it happened to work for me but hopefully it will work for you.

What takes the longest to go away is the high blood pressure/pounding heart feeling. In 3-4 days its down about 80-90 percent, but its all the way out to 2 week for me until it becomes un-noticeable.

I buy it at Whole Foods.

You are supposed to avoid sugars but I do not. Probably takes longer to heal but if I go on Candex and avoid sugar then until the yeast is gone it uses up all the carbs and sugars I take in leaving me feeling worse so I continue to eat sugar and then scale it back. Takes longer but I feel better doing it that way.

[OliveBranch]

One of the ingredients in Candex is "malt diastase"--is this safe for celiacs? (You probably wouldn't be taking it if it were unsafe, but it always seems smart to check.) Do you know if the enzyme is separated from the malt in a way that makes it safe?

Your post is very interesting--thanks for sharing.

Eric_C, on Oct 19 2009, 12:59 PM, said:

Candex worked, for me at least, fairly quickly.

First thing to go was the brain fog/stuffiness feeling. Then over the course of 2 weeks I felt great.

It also has the added benefit of making an accidentical glutening just the stomach issues, no after effects.

I'd be interested to hear your results. I said everyone is different, it happened to work for me but hopefully it will work for you.

What takes the longest to go away is the high blood pressure/pounding heart feeling. In 3-4 days its down about 80-90 percent, but its all the way out to 2 week for me until it becomes un-noticeable.

I buy it at Whole Foods.

You are supposed to avoid sugars but I do not. Probably takes longer to heal but if I go on Candex and avoid sugar then until the yeast is gone it uses up all the carbs and sugars I take in leaving me feeling worse so I continue to eat sugar and then scale it back. Takes longer but I feel better doing it that way.

[Eric_C]

CeliacHopeful, on Oct 19 2009, 01:30 PM, said:

One of the ingredients in Candex is "malt diastase"--is this safe for celiacs? (You probably wouldn't be taking it if it were unsafe, but it always seems smart to check.) Do you know if the enzyme is separated from the malt in a way that makes it safe?

Your post is very interesting--thanks for sharing.

I hope its gluten-free, I've been eating it like candy

From the label:

"Candex contains no articifial colorings, flavorings, GMO's, sugar, soy, yeast, dairy, corn, gluten, wheat, or other common allergens. It is suitable for vegetarians, etc..."

I'm very sensative now and I've had zero ill effects from it.

[OliveBranch]

That's great to know! I think I just might give it a try.
I'm glad it worked so well for you!

Eric_C, on Oct 19 2009, 03:39 PM, said:

I hope its gluten-free, I've been eating it like candy

From the label:

"Candex contains no articifial colorings, flavorings, GMO's, sugar, soy, yeast, dairy, corn, gluten, wheat, or other common allergens. It is suitable for vegetarians, etc..."

I'm very sensative now and I've had zero ill effects from it.

[Eric_C]

CeliacHopeful, on Oct 19 2009, 03:58 PM, said:

That's great to know! I think I just might give it a try.
I'm glad it worked so well for you!

Can't hurt, or at leatws can't seem to hurt from what I've read. Always best to check with your doctor but I looked at your sig.

In the years before figuring out I had Celiac's I always told me doctor I thought it had something to do with Potatoes.

Potatoes, rice, the sugars you mention.

All of those things can effect yeast, and yeast can effect the way your body processes them leading to some odd results.

Might help eliviate some of your other issues.

I wonder how many Celiac's have no other tolerance issues? I can eat antyhing I want except gluten.

[shirleyujest]

Is Candex similar to Caprylic acid? I used to take that and have been thinking of resuming as I still have ups and downs since going gluten-free.

[Eric_C]

I believe people take that for yeast issues.

One of the advantages of Candex I believe is that it does not cause the 'death problems'....since Candex 'eats' yeast and other methods kill yeast when the yeast dies it releases a gas that can build up in the blood stream.

[Eric_C]

I just went through my third attempt to see if yeast was my true issue.

Over the past 3 months I have ate basically the same diet. Not the best diet but I wanted to be consistent.

When I originally posted this topic I was feeling great. I stopped taking Candex and continued to eat the way I was. It took about 3-4 days but Thursday I met with a potential customer for lunch. Indian food. Shortly after eating I felt tense and slightly jittery, that went away after an hour or so.

That night I had a hard time sleeping. Yesterday late afternoon I started to have low back pains and muscle/nerve pains in my hands, top of my legs, and at times I ha a slight tremor in my hands.

Last night I felt tense, a bit of anxiety and could not sleep(me posting at 3am). The muscle/nerve pain got worse. We had Indian again for lunch yesterday(we eat a lot of Indian and I'm 100 percent sure its gluten-free) and afterwards the same tension. Went and had ribs for dinner, gluten-free BBQ sauce, the tension got wose, the tremors got a bit worse and I had a feeling of crashing after the sugar/carbs wore off.

I didn't get it get really bad but I suspect in another 1-2 days I would be far worse.

I started to take Candex again this morning and will continue on it for a few weeks, 4 pills per day, then go down to 1 pill per evening.

If all this alleviates itself again then its the only thing I can think of.

I went through all the stuff looking at nightshades, sugar, carbs, corn, etc...but all of it comes down to yeast.

This may sound like a cause but everything I read here mirrors what I went through after giving up gluten and the response to the yeast pills has been amazing.

I did the quick and dirty yeast test. After a nights sleep without taking a drink you keep a glass of distilled water next to the bed. You spit in the glass. After 10-15 minutes if the spit dissolves or floats to the bottom of the glass then your OK. If you get these stringy floating strands, you have a yeast problem.