Candida: The Hidden Menace

Wanda Harris, N.D., owner of The Herbal Lady, sees clients frequently with a variety of ailments that have no obvious connection. Very often, Candidiasis is the culprit.

Dr. Wanda Harris offers a seven-step Candida Program Solution at The Herbal Lady in Owasso.

A healthy mind and body is your most valuable asset. Striving to achieve this healthy lifestyle can be difficult but may be accomplished by keeping everything in balance. Sometimes, however, your body loses that balance and a variety of illnesses can occur. Poor diet, medications, belly fat and stress can all cause infections and illness. One of the most common of these illnesses is called Candidiasis.

Candida albicans is a yeast-like fungus that inhabits the intestine and colon area. Normally, this fungus lives in a healthy balance with other bacteria and yeasts in the body; however, certain conditions can cause this fungus to multiply, weakening the immune system and causing the infection known as Candidiasis. Because this fungus travels through the bloodstream to many parts of the body, various symptoms may develop.

Wanda Harris, N.D., owner of The Herbal Lady, sees clients frequently with a variety of ailments that have no obvious connection. Very often, Candidiasis is the culprit. “We have to understand that we all have yeast. In your gut or colon, it’s fine. But when you have an overgrowth, that is where the problem begins,” says Dr. Harris.

Because Candidiasis can infect various parts of the body – the most common being the ears, nose, gastrointestinal tract and bowels – it can be characterized by many symptoms. Some of these include congestion, acne, muscle and joint pain, nagging cough, persistent heartburn, depression, hypothyroidism followed by adrenal problems, and even diabetes.

Yeast overgrowth can be caused by many different factors. A major cause is medications such as antibiotics, anti-inflammatory drugs including prednisone and ibuprofen, and birth control pills. Poor diet plays a major role as well. The chief dietary culprit is by far excessive sugar, followed closely by insufficient fiber. In fact, antibiotic abuse, overconsumption of sugar, or combinations of both are the most likely causes of yeast overgrowth.

When you have a yeast overgrowth, you’re hosting organisms that typically produce some 79 different toxins, including formaldehyde and acetaldehyde, which is the same toxin you get from drinking alcohol. Acetaldehyde is responsible for the “brain fog” that many get with Candidiasis. The toxins from these harmful bacteria in the gut are also a possible cause of Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. And yeast overgrowth in the large intestine produces massive mounts of cell-damaging free radicals, prime villains in the aging process.

If you suspect that symptoms you have been experiencing could be the result of a Candida infection, Dr. Wanda offers her patients a quick, inexpensive test to determine if yeast overgrowth is indeed their problem. She has a seven-step Candida Program Solution that will help her patients get to the root of the problem and eliminate it. The seven-step plan includes changing your diet to starve the yeast; keeping your acid and alkaline pH in proper balance; using good pro-biotics; adding supplements with herbs and other nutrients; building up your immune system; clearing the yeast as it dies off; and repairing your “leaky gut.”

This April, Dr. Harris will host a health seminar at the Radisson Hotel in Tulsa. This will be a great opportunity for anyone seeking information on Candida and many other topics. Times and date will be announced soon.

Dr. Harris would also like to say thanks to all those who have helped her make the past 10 years in Owasso a huge success. “We are so excited to be celebrating our tenth anniversary in the Owasso community,” she says. “We appreciate all of our customers and their friends and family.”

New this year is a family discount plan for both new and established clients, and Dr. Harris is also offering an opportunity to get your herbs at wholesale prices. “It’s a new year, and the best way to start is with good health.”

For more information, contact

The Herbal Lady

(918) 274-4114