Candida die off symptoms are the same as detox reactions (also called Herxheimer reaction). It is a flu-like feeling that you get when viruses, bacteria, parasites, fungi, and other pathogens are killed and being cleaned out of your body. With candida, die off symptoms are caused by large numbers of candida being killed off, releasing a high number of toxins into your body.

People who experience candida die off symptoms describe feeling cold, dizzy, light-headed, faint, can’t-think-straight, or bone-tired.

These flu-like symptoms are also your body’s reactions to cleansing or detoxification, caused by the body isolating and getting rid of toxins. These include increased mucus secretions in all mucus membranes (nose, throat, sinuses, lungs, vagina, intestines, etc.) and muscle or joint aches and pains, more headaches, digestion disturbances and so on. It’s like that “bad all over feeling” you had during a bout with the flu.

Previous Symptoms Will Intensify During Die Off

In addition to the candida die off symptoms mentioned earlier, any symptoms you had while the candida was overgrowing in your body will intensify. These vary from person to person, depending on to how candida was attacking their body before treatment. If your symptoms were digestive problems, you will experience an increase in digestive disturbances during the die off period.

If your symptoms were mostly in your head (for example, brain fog, dizziness, headaches, etc.), you will experience an increase in those head-related signs. And so on. In other words, any areas of the body that were affected by candida overgrowth will show up more intensely during the die-off period.

Also, if your intake of carbohydrates, sugar, alcohol, and other forms of sugar is too high, it will feed the yeast in your body and you will experience these same symptoms.

When Does Candida Die Off Happen?

If a candida treatment is particularly effective, the onset of candida die off symptoms can start within a couple of hours. This is a good sign that the treatment is working. If symptoms are too uncomfortable, try cutting back to a lower amount of whatever treatment you are receiving, and then increasing it gradually. This will help ease your discomfort and is a much better route than stopping the treatment altogether.

Also, to complicate matters further, food sensitivities caused by a leaky gut, and allergies can create similar symptoms. You should identify your food sensitivities and allergies while you are changing your diet. It can appear as if you are allergic to some foods when your reaction is not an allergy or sensitivity at all. Instead it is a healing reaction (that is, die-off symptoms). This usually happens when you ingest powerful antifungals (natural antifungals include coconut oil and garlic). This is why it is important to start at lower doses and gradually increase them.

Switch to Candida Diet Gradually

It can be difficult to determine what is causing your candida die off symptoms. Being on a candida detox diet alone will not cause severe die off symptoms, unless you started on the entire diet at once. If you gradually change over to the candida diet, some candida overgrowth will be killed off, but not in large numbers at once.

It is better to gradually change over to the diet until you have incorporated it completely into your meals and eating habits. You would also start taking some important supplements. The diet is intended to cut off the food supply to yeast and to build up your immune system with a nutritious foods and supplements. Coconut oil is one of the first things added to your diet because it is nutritious and so important for your health to get plenty of good saturated fats, in addition to it being an antifungal.

Antifungal Supplements

Once you have successfully incorporated the candida diet into your life, you can start on a good, strong antifungal (for example, garlic). Candida die off symptoms cannot be mistaken at this point. A good antifungal will kill off yeast in high numbers. You can regulate the rate at which they are killed by taking smaller doses and then gradually increasing them. Pushing through this phase and being consistent with your diet and supplements is very important.

After you have been on an antifungal for about a month, you can start on probiotics. Probiotics are live microorganisms that are beneficial to your body. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and bifidobacteria are the most common types of microbes used as probiotics. Probiotics will also cause candida die off symptoms to manifest.

Sticking to the Diet Is Critical

If you slip with your diet by consuming sugars, alcohol or too many carbohydrates (especially grains and starchy foods) or you become exposed to environmental substances you are sensitive to, you will also experience symptoms of the candida overgrowth. That is why sticking to the diet is critical, in addition to avoiding allergens. If you start on antifungals and are not sticking to your diet or your “true” allergens have not been eliminated, you will not know what is causing your symptoms.

Antifungals and probiotics that are simple (those that containing as few ingredients as possible) are recommended. Too many ingredients open the door to sensitivity reactions. Coconut oil and garlic are the best antifungals, but in some cases powdered nystatin is good to use because of its versatility. It is particularly effective for sniffing, to kill candida in the nose and sinuses.