Today it seems more and more people are struggling with food allergies or intolerances. Whether it's lactose, MSG, gluten, or yeast, people are looking to control their diets in an effort to stave off adverse reactions and a fleet of symptoms caused by candida overgrowth. Yeast intolerance simply describes the outbreak of Candida yeast that can occur when one consumes too much yeast. A yeast free diet aims to address this issue.

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Some yeast-free diet information may be misleading, as the modified diet may or may not be completely yeast free. Everyone may have a different threshold, so the stringency required to remain symptom-free may vary. By preventing the body from getting the yeast it needs to develop the problems, overall health and a well-functioning immune system are promoted. By reducing or eliminating yeast from the diet, the symptoms that result from yeast intolerance are prevented.

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Let's talk about the types of diet restrictions we're referring to. The primary category of foods to consider is the group of food that itself has lots of yeast in it. The high yeast foods include cookies, pretzels, bread, muffins, and so on. While that may be obvious, yeast is also commonly found in vinegar - and all foods containing it. Believe it or not, you can typically find vinegar in foods such as mayonnaise, mustard, any pickled food, barbecue sauce and salad dressing. Attention to all of these is needed to keep candida at bay via a yeast free diet.

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Other groups you want to be wary of are fermented foods and "moldy" foods. While this also includes the vinegar-based pickled foods already mentioned, this also includes wine, liquor, beer, and cider. The moldy foods are your cheeses, dried meats, smoked meats (including jerky), mushrooms, nuts, bacon, soy sauce, canned tomatoes, malt, and even pre-packaged herbs and teas. A yeast free diet, or one that significantly minimizes it, will need to consider these food groups too.

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No discussion of a yeast free diet would be complete without talking about sugar. The worst, by far, is processed sugar. Granulated sugar, as well as confectioner's and brown sugar, are at the top of the list. You'll also want to limit or eliminate chocolate, syrup, honey, cola and so on. High fructose corn syrup is almost more common than actual sugar, so keep this in mind when reeling in your "sugar" intake. Sweet fruits should also be controlled, including raisins, grapes, dates, figs, and even dried fruits. Too much of this and candida will have a field day.

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Times vary for different folks, but adhering to a yeast-free diet for 2-6 weeks is generally enough to see big results. On top of minimizing yeast, and the side effects, you should find that you feel healthier altogether from the better diet. You may even find that you look better, if nothing else because you feel better. Note, however, that during the first few weeks your body will be detoxing and you will have yeast toxins dumping into the intestines and vagina. This could make you feel worse before you feel better, with flu-like symptoms of fatigue, weakness, and irritability. No yeast free diet information would be complete without at least mentioning this probability. Stay the course with your yeast free diet, however, and you'll see victory. While it's best to avoid the problem foods for a month or two initially, you may find that you are able to slowly put these foods back into your diet over time without launching candida into overdrive. By doing it systematically, you will be able to clearly tell which foods are causing you the greatest problems.