Antibiotics are the Reason Behind Yeast Infection
Most people take antibiotics for bacterial infection and after observing many people and they all complain the same thing why do we get yeast infection after taking bacterial antibiotics? The answer to it is very simple Candida albicans is the causative agent of the yeast infection. It is yeast which abides simply on the body of about 90% of people in the areas such as the skin, the gut, the mouth and the vagina. The growth of Candida albicans is usually subdued by the other simple flora recognised on the body such as E. coli in the gut and Lactobacillus in the vagina. Simple flora on the body challenges for spot and nutrients and release some very toxic metabolites which stops the growth of pathogenic microorganisms. Lactobacillus is very important to maintain the healthy environment into the vagina as it balances out the acidic PH in the vagina. An acid PH is also required for the fertilisation.
If you're taking antibiotics for thrush also known as yeast infection then you must know that antibiotics usually kill the good flora as well as the bad. Lactobacillus being a good flora that is essential for maintaining a healthy vagina is also killed. Yeast infections are usually resistance to antibiotics which is no surprise as many bacteria have established resistance towards antibiotics. Therefore, they are not perturbed by them and this grants the yeast, Candida albicans, to overgrow and produce symptoms such as thrush.
The question you should be asking right about now is how to prevent thrush when on antibiotics and not why you are getting yeast infection when on antibiotics. Here are some of the solutions that can help you.
- Don't take unnecessary antibiotics. Just take them if absolutely necessary and you should complete the full course.
- You should use narrow spectrum antibiotics where it is possible to use.
- If you're on antibiotics please remember to take an antifungal cream like canesten cream as a prophylactic. A prophylactic usually prevents infection from further developing.
- Natural remedies are the best. You can always use garlic while on antibiotics to prevent yeast infection.
- It is recommended to take probiotics when you're on antibiotics each day. Probiotics such as yogurt are best for maintaining immunity and prevents any unwanted infection. Probiotics also help in developing the lost lactobacillus for a healthy vagina. Also it may happen that the antibiotics would kill the probiotics therefore you should continue taking probiotics even after your antibiotics course is finished.
- Other alternative to probiotic is Saccharomyces which is a not a pathogenic genus of yeast used as baker's yeast and brewer's yeast. Saccharomyces doesn't get killed off by the antibiotic and challenges the Candida albicans for spot and nutrients preventing it from overgrowing and causing symptoms. Saccharomyces is completely annihilated from the body once you stop taking it.
When you go to a doctor and the doctor prescribes antibiotic do ask the doctor for any alternative.
