Memory Problems?

[Guest ~wAvE WeT sAnD~]

My short-term memory has gone to pot since I've been sick. I was diagnosed with ADD when I was four years old and that doesn't make matters easier. I'm driving people nuts! Help!

[Guest jhmom]

I have heard of people with autism and ADD improve on the gluten-free diet. How long have you been gluten-free? Hang in there and give it some time.

[Guest ~wAvE WeT sAnD~]

Hi Stacie,

I've been on the diet for about a week. I haven't seen any big changes yet, but I guess I should be patient. I hope the experts are right.

Thanks for the info!

[Guest LisaB]

Jill,

I have been where you are and be assured it does get better, I am at 8 months gluten free and have done some extra things to help myself along, but my memory is vastly improved! My ADD is getting better as well. Candida can be partly to blame and you may want to look into that, also stress on the system will produce excess cortisol in the system...this is linked to the destruction of short term memory and also weight gain around the trunk of the body. At my worst, I could read a sentence and look up and not be able to tell you what I just read, no kidding, so hang tuff, it gets better.

[Guest ~wAvE WeT sAnD~]

YAY Lisa! You have just made my day (or should I say morning...it's 1:48 am where I live... I love this board!). What is Candida? I've never heard of it...I'll ask my doc/nutritionalist about it...and the cortisol would make sense...I had a stress overload when I first became sick...

Thank you Thank you

[ezrab12]

Hi All,

I also was having memory loss and almost foggyness in the brain and would

actually hear people talking but sometimes just not process what they were saying

for a few moments almost like a vertigo feeling. It has gotten better and I am diagnosed Celiac and gluten-free since March 04 after suffering from gastro problems since 1987.

Also is it possible for men to have Candida, it's a yeast infection, correct?

The reason why I ask is because I have tingling in my arms legs, etc. and i have heard that candida can cause these symptoms as well.

Hang in there Jill, it will come araound

[Guest ~wAvE WeT sAnD~]

Candida is a yeast infection? That would make sense, but I had a yeast infection in December and haven't had those symptoms since. Could the infection still be in my body (along with the other infections.)?

[Guest LisaB]

Candida is a form of yeast that naturally lives in the intestines in small amounts and normally would be kept in check by other flora in the system...but for several reasons the balance can be disturbed and the candida grows unchecked and becomes "Systematic Candidiasis" when it becomes a strong enough infection that it leaves the intestinal track and infects you body wide. It creates hormones of its own that distrupt your own hormonal balance and produces mass quantities of toxins as it feeds on sugars in your system. It is a very hard to get rid of problem, people who have had both candida and cancer say they would rather have to face the cancer again then have candida. Its worst side effect is the fatigue and foggy thinking.

Yes, men do also get it, it is just you hear about women getting "yeast infections" more often, the yeasties like to hang out in moist warm places, so any area like that on the body will be prone to having yeast infections once you have candida. Some where on this board I posted a list of symptoms, if you do a search you should find it.

The good news is that after years of trying to lick my own problems with the beast (candida) I am finally getting somewhere with homemade kefir (which Jill knows about already) to repopulate the intestines with the "good" guys needed to keep candida in its rightful place, I'll post an article below that explains. Also kombucha to help with the detoxing process, this is a fermented beverage, Organic Virgin Coconut Oil (I use NOW brand) which has acids that help you rid yourself of candida. There are many anti-fungal herbs out there that help if your wanting to hit it from all angles, although the kefir hits it HARD, the die-off symptoms were a bit intense there for awhile.

Here is the article (feel free to contact me if you want info on how to get the real grains that grow, there is a network of people that will share extra grains if you pay the shipping - don't waste your money on the powder stuff at the health food store it isn't even as good):

Kefir and yogurt are cultured milk products, but they contain different types of beneficial bacteria. Yogurt contains transient beneficial bacteria that keep the digestive system clean and provide food for the friendly bacteria that reside there.  But kefir can actually colonize the intestinal tract, a feat that yogurt cannot match. 

Kefir contains several major strains of friendly bacteria not commonly found in yogurt, Lactobacillus Caucasus, Leuconostoc, Acetobacter species, and Streptococcus species. It also contains beneficial yeasts, such as Saccharomyces kefir and Torula kefir, which dominate, control and eliminate destructive pathogenic yeasts in the body. They do so by penetrating the mucosal lining where unhealthy yeast and bacteria reside, forming a virtual SWAT team that housecleans and strengthens the intestines. Hence, the body becomes more efficient in resisting such pathogens as E. coli and intestinal parasites. 

  Kefir's active yeast and bacteria provide more nutritive value than yogurt by helping digest the foods that you eat and by keeping the colon environment clean and healthy. 

Because the curd size of kefir is smaller than yogurt, it is also easier to digest, which makes it a particularly excellent, nutritious food for babies, invalids and the elderly, as well as a remedy for digestive disorders.

Kefir [Kephir or Kefyr] is pronounced kef

[ezrab12]

Hi Lisa,

Thank you for the candida info. I hope I did not sound ignorant about calling

it an infection prone to women. I will check all this out.

Thank you, hopefully this is a what is causing these lingering symptoms.

Best,

ezrab12

[Guest LisaB]

ezrab12,

Nope, didn't sound ignorant at all, that is the context we all usually hear about yeast infections in, goodness there are enough commercials on the subject!

I hope it is the answer to your remaining problems as well, it is the majority of mine. It remains to be seen how much the kefir will improve my immune system. That is my other issue, I go in public and spend any amount of time with people, I get sick. I work at home, so I have yet be in such a circumstance, although since starting kefir I have been around friends and neighbors quite a bit and usually I would have caught something after a few visits with people...so far so good!

If you do go the kefir route to rid yourself of candida, be sure to start very slowly...once there are rival probiotics in your system kicking the candida out, you will have a worsening of symptoms as the candida fight back. Some people make their kefir and then just start out with a tablespoon a day and build up from there.

[ezrab12]

Hi Lisa,

I am a bit confused, I saw this brand of Kefir by lifeway that says you can put it

in milk. The way it is explained here is more like a tea or something?

Thanks, Bill

[Guest LisaB]

I believe those are freeze dried granules with some, but not all of the probiotic strains contained in "real" living kefir grains ( which is a funny thing to call them since they look like rubbery cauliflower looking clumps see this site for full details: Open Original Shared Link ).

Those packets are much like yogurt culture, and will work if you would prefer to go that way, but from what others say you don't get full health benefits from the commercial variety not to mention that you have to keep buying it. Real kefir grains are living (obviously better than freeze dried in my opinion) and are basically next to free to obtain and they GROW, not only do they grow and reproduce, they never die. You will never run out if you treat them kindly. I found out about this because I was doing research on probiotics to help myself recover, I thought it was going to cost a fortune as the products I could find that sounded good and others had used were PRICEY, but then I found out about kefir grains...I am so thankful I did. You can make cheese of all hardnesses and more, plus all kefir products are digestible by the lactose intolerant, you will see some of that info on the site I referred above. There is a Yahoo discussion group that you might want to look around: Open Original Shared Link, also if you want grains let me know, I'll send you the email of the gal I got mine from. I got both the grains and kombucha culture for the cost of shipping and handling ($10), that is the best ten bucks I have ever spent in my life.

Feel free to let me know if you have any other questions.