Diflucan Review

Diflucan, also known as Fluconazole, is typically prescribed to treat infections caused by candida. This includes yeast infections, urinary tract infections, throat infections, and pneumonia. It is usually in pill for and prescribed as a one time dose and sometimes in multiple doses. The medicine should be taken with a full glass of water. Some of the side effects may include: nausea, headache, dizziness, unusual or unpleasant taste in your mouth, indigestion, or itching of the skin.

My gynecologist prescribed Diflucan on two different occasions. The first time, was to treat a full blown yeast infection that seemed to be reoccurring every month. She prescribed two doses. If I wasn’t feeling better with-in 3 days after the first dose, I was to take the second dose. I ended up taking both doses because I was not better after 3 days. The infection seemed to clear up after the second dose but was back again with-in a week. The second time my gyno gave me Diflucan, it was after my yeast infection had finally cleared up. Typically I would get them the week after my period, so I was instructed to take one Diflucan towards the end of my period to prevent one from occurring. This seemed to work. I did this for about 4 months. Once my 4 months was up, I felt one coming on the following month towards the end of my period and that’s when I made the changes to my diet. Doctors say often times Diflucan medicine is not strong enough to work for everyone. Obviously it didn’t work for me when I had a full blown yeast infection, but it did help prevent them when I felt one coming on. It didn’t prevent them permanently–only for the time I was taking the medication. Some of the side effects I experienced were itching of the skin, dizziness, and unusual taste in my mouth. I didn’t really feel like eating much with the strange taste in my mouth.

There are a number of sites online claiming you can buy Diflucan without a prescription. Personally, I would not trust any of these sites and would only take Diflucan if I had a prescription from my doctor. Continued use of yeast infection medicines can cause your body to become immune to them. Sometimes women think they have a yeast infection, when they really have a bacterial infection. It is always best to consult with your doctor first before using any type of prescription strength medicine, especially if it is a reoccurring problem. For my Diflucan prescription, I think I paid a couple of dollars for one pill and that was with insurance covering 70%, so it is fairly inexpensive.

StarStar(Rated 2/5 Stars)


Candistroy Review

Candistroy is a two part system to help eliminate yeast overgrowth. It consists of anti-bacterial and anti-fungal herbs in addition to a probiotic. One bottle of the two part system is labeled “Candistroyer”. Candistroyer contains a natural substance called Tannates. It is supposed to bind to bad fungus in your body and make them ineffective. The second part of the system is called the “Probiotic Rebuilder”.  It contains lactobacillus acidophilus BT1386 and Bifido bacteriaI, which help create a healthy balance of bacteria. A healthy balance of bacteria is an important part of having a healthy yeast free vagina. The two products also say they are both shelf stable, which means you are getting a potent product. Often times products, especially ones containing lactobacullus acidophilus, are not very potent by the time they make it into your grocery bag. Candistroy ensures potent products.

I decided to try Candistroy in the place of AZO yeast. The product suggests you start slowly and work your way up to more pills, otherwise, you may experience severe die off symptoms. Die off symptoms may include flu like symptoms, as well as an increase in itching down there. Recommended dose is as follows: week 1: take 1 tablet of each product with breakfast and dinner. Week 2: increase to 2 tablets of each product with breakfast and dinner. Week 3 up to 6 months: increase to 3 tablets of each with breakfast and dinner.

There are a couple of problems I had with Candistroy. For one, I experienced very severe die off symptoms. I took as directed and even stayed on the week 1 dose for two weeks because the die off was so bad. I literally felt like I had the flu. I felt hot, nauseous, stuffed up, and had a bad sore throat. I also had white looking stuff in my stools, which I assumed was all the yeast being flushed out. I lost a lot of weight while on these pills, and I felt horrible. I also felt a lot of itching down there. I stuck it out though, thinking it would get better. Eventually the die off symptoms subsided. The second problem I had was that once you get to the maximum recommended dose, you are taking 12 pills a day. These aren’t small pills either. I only stayed on Candistroy until I finished the two bottles because I just couldn’t deal with taking that many pills. Plus it didn’t seem to work as well as AZO Yeast.

Many people say they felt much more energetic and completely yeast free after finishing the two bottles, but it didn’t do that for me. It didn’t seem to fight off the itchiness towards the end of my period very quickly (the time I’m most prone to yeast infections). I most certainly didn’t feel very energized.  It’s also expensive, $24 for the two part system and it won’t last a full month taking the maximum dose. I guess the only good thing about this system is that you go on for 6 months and then you get to go a couple of months without taking anything. Many people gave this product great reviews and that is why I tried it. It just didn’t work as well for me, and I absolutely cannot deal with taking 12 large pills a day.

StarStar(Rated 2/5 Stars)


AZO Yeast Review

AZO Yeast helps prevent yeast infections and also helps relieve the symptoms of an existing yest infection. It will not cure an existing yeast infection but can be used along with antifungal vaginal creams, ointments, or suppositories to relieve symptoms such as itching, burning and swelling. One of the main ingredients in AZO Yeast is lactobacillus, which is also found in yogurt, but the pill form is much more potent. Lactobacillus is a friendly bacteria that helps prevent the overgrowth of unfriendly bacteria and candida yeast.  One pill of AZO Yeast should be taken daily to prevent future occurrences of yeast infections. During an infection you can up the dosage to three AZO Yeast pills a day. The pills should be stored at room temperature and either come in a bottle or in a box with a few sheets of pills encased in plastic and foil backing.

I’ve been taking AZO yeast for about a year and it is another one of my life savers, especially just after my period. I take one a day on a regular basis and then the week after my period I take 3 a day because that’s when I’m most prone to infections. I haven’t had a full blown yeast infection since I’ve been taking it. I have tried other probiotic pills with lactobacillus, but none of them gave me as good of results as AZO Yeast. The pills are fairly small and easy to swallow. They also don’t cause stomach upset, so you don’t have to take them with food. AZO Yeast is inexpensive. It costs about $8 or $9 for 60 tablets. Sometimes you can find it cheaper online. I’ve had especially good luck finding it on Amazon for a decent price. Most drugstores sell AZO Yeast as well.

StarStarStarStarStar(Rated 5/5 Stars)


Yeast Infections Vs. Urinary Tract Infections

Yeast infections and UTIs are two very different infections. They feel different and they’re treated differently when you visit a doctor with these problems. Signs of a yeast infection include an itching and or burning sensation around the vulva, anus or inside the vagina….it can pretty much itch anywhere down there when too much yeast is present. Signs also include pain during sex, a yeasty odor, cottage cheese like discharge, and pain when you pee. I can’t count the number of times I’ve sat on the toilet examining the discharge in my underwear trying to decide if it looks like cottage cheese….sometimes its difficult to tell especially if it is close to that time of the month. You can have a yeast infection and have some, all, or none of these symptoms. I recall one time when I was in my teens, I visited the gyno for my yearly and she informed me that I had a yeast infection. I had no idea. I felt fine.

Urinary Tract Infections feel quite differently. The pain when you pee when you have a yeast infections feels more like a burning sensation when the urine hits the inside walls of the vagina. The pain when you pee with a UTI is VERY different. With a UTI it feels like needles are being stuck in your bladder. During the early stages of a UTI, the sharp pains happen at the end of the pee. Symptoms can also include fever, dizziness, nausea, and feeling like you always have to pee even when you don’t. If a Yeast Infection is left untreated, it may clear up on its own and you can also treat it with over the counter medications. With a UTI, you must go to the doctor to get antibiotics. If left untreated, a UTI can spread from your bladder to your kidneys and can even cause death. If I had to choose between the two, I think I would rather have a yeast infection as apposed to a UTI….not that I would want to choose between either.

They sound like very different infections, however, there are many similarities when it comes to preventing Yeast Infections and UTIs. UTIs are typically caused by the bacteria e-coli (not the e-coli in food). When e-coli enters the urethra, it can make its way to the bladder and give you a UTI. People used to call a UTI the honeymooners disease. The reason for this is because sex can sometimes help the e-coli enter the urethra by pushing it closer to its opening. Yeast Infections are usually cause by an overgrowth of yeast (candida). Everyone has a small amount of yeast present in their body, which can be healthy. When conditions become unstable in the vagina, that’s when yeast can multiply like rabbits.

I’m just going to touch on a few of the basics for preventing both UTIs and Yeast Infections. These basics are the common suggestions doctors usually give. Often times they do not explain the reasoning behind their suggestions. Always wipe front to back. Women are really at a disatvantage because there is only a small space between the anus and vagina and the bacteria from the anus can cause these infections. Another basic in preventing these infections is to drink plenty of water. Water helps flush out the vagina and urinary tract. Wearing clothing that allows you to breath down there, changing out of a wet bathing suit quickly, consuming a diet low in sugar/carbs, and peeing after sex can also help prevent Yeast Infections and UTIs. The more you can let the area down there breath, the better because bacteria flourishes in warm moist environments. As for the diet low in sugar/carbs, doctors usually don’t tell you that sugar and refined carbs (which turn to sugar) irritate the urinary tract and also feed yeast. This little paragraph is just a glimpse into the steps I followed to rid myself of chronic yeast infections/UTIs. Much more is to come at a later post!


#1 for Preventing UTI and Yeast Infections

I first considered going in detail about all the little remedies for preventing these chronic infections, but then I decided it might be best to start with the most important thing first–DIET. Doctors don’t emphasize this enough and sometimes not even at all. They may drop the hint that lowering your sugar intake might help, but most people don’t really know what that means. If you suffer from these recurring infections, it is not enough to just cut out the “sweets”, such as cookies, cakes, ice cream, etc. The average person consumes about 50 teaspoons of sugar a day. You might be thinking, “well I know that’s not me”. There is a pretty good chance you are consuming that much sugar because nearly everything has sugar in it these days. Even things like lunch meat and yogurt can often have added sugar.

Changing my diet was the best thing I ever did. I was definitely one of those people who consumed 50 teaspoons of sugar a day. I’m sure I exceeded that limit on many days. I was addicted to sugar and carbohydrates. I always had candy in my purse. Sometimes I would make a meal out of poptarts or sugary cereal. Sometimes I’d even make a meal out of a candy bar. When I did try to eat healthy, I followed a low calorie, low fat diet, which consequently was also high in carbs. I also LOVED watermelon. During the summer I would eat a whole watermelon every two days. I felt like that was healthy because watermelon doesn’t have a lot of calories, it was fruit, and it had lots of water in it.

Once I began doing my research for a diet that would help prevent UTIs and yeast infections, I found out quickly that I had being doing everything wrong as far as my diet was concerned. Sugar and carbs feed yeast, and sugar irritates the urinary tract. There are quite a few different diets I found online, but they all seemed to have one thing in common–relatively low in carbs and low in sugar. I chose the Atkins diet route because I wanted to lower my carbs and sugar intake as much as possible in order to starve the yeast and keep my urinary tract happy. Plus, Atkins has a book to follow, tons of recipes, and tons of forums and such for support. It is much easier to do a diet when you have so many resources.

I starting out doing what I thought was Atkins without buying the book. I just followed the basics rules I had read online. I cut out anything white and carby (bread, rice, chips, crackers, popcorn, anything with flour). I also cut out sugar in ANY form. No sweets, no fruit high in sugar. I also cut out caffeine. I later bought the book. The book even has a section on yeast infections and how the Atkins diet can help prevent them. I noticed a big difference within the first two weeks of following the diet. I had no yeast symptoms and my urinary tract felt healthy. I also felt more energized and overall just healthier. It has been almost a year since I went low carb/low sugar, and I haven’t had a single yeast infection or urinary tract infection. Click on the “Diet” section of the site for more details on the diet I follow.