The Candida and Migraine Connection

Could Candida be causing your migraine?

What is Candida albicans?

Candida albicans is a type of yeast commonly found in the oral, gastrointestinal and genital tracts. You might be familiar with it if you have experienced thrush.

Under normal circumstances, this productive human coloniser is kept in check by our native bacteria and immune system, contributing to our well-being by promoting gut health and nutrient absorption and aiding digestion.

However, if this symbiotic relationship is disturbed, such as in the case of antibiotic use, Candida albicans can grow out of control, leading to symptoms such as thrush, brain fog, irritable bowel, bloating, allergies, sneezing, food intolerances and….migraine and headaches.

The Candida and migraine connection

Studies have shown that when Candida was treated in people with migraine, there was a reduction in the frequency and severity of migraine headaches.

Now, this doesn’t necessarily mean that Candida is the cause or trigger of migraine.

However, the presence of an over-abundance of Candida could indicate that the digestive system is compromised.

Candida albicans have ‘tentacles’ that can tunnel into the protective gut lining, causing it to become permeable – also known as leaky gut.

And if you have followed me for a while, you know that gut health can drive migraine in various way as our gastrointestinal tract and organs play a massive role in hormone imbalance, neurotransmitter eg serotonin function, liver health, nervous system health, emotional health, stress … in fact the whole health of our bodies.

So while Candida is unlikely to be the single cause or trigger of migraine, treating Candida overgrowth can certainly help reduce the frequency and severity of migraine (in fact studies have shown this too)…and clear up other symptoms at the same time.

How do you find out if you have Candida overgrowth?

A comprehensive stool analysis is one of the most accurate waya to test for Candida or yeast overgrowth in the large intestine.

I like to use PCR/DNA stool testing to measure genetic material from organisms in the digestive tract. The test tells the amount of yeast present, letting us know the severity of overgrowth. This test also looks for parasites, pathogenic bacteria, levels of beneficial bacteria, such as Lactobacillus, and other digestive markers like secretory IgA.

Because often, Candida is not the only microbe responsible for digestive dysfunction.

Here is how I treat Candida

If we find a Candida or other overgrowth on your stool test results then we implement a natural treatment protocol which includes:

• Temporarily removing foods from your diet that feed yeast overgrowths, such as simple sugars. Or if we find other microbes out of balance, we may look at something like a low FODMAP diet.

• Reducing yeast overgrowth with herbal antifungals and nutritional supplements.

• Enhancing the growth of beneficial flora with prebiotic fibres, probiotics and prebiotic foods.

• Enhancing gut immunity and repair the gut lining with herbs and nutritional supplements.

This process needs to happen in stages over several weeks and often months. If you have migraine, then we often need to take it particularly slowly so as to not trigger migraine attacks with rapid changes.

When the overgrowth is reduced and conditions in your gut are improved then it naturally keeps an overgrowth of yeast at bay, a healthy balance is restored and symptoms are resolved.

If this is an area you need help with, reach out for an appointment today to get started.