Yeast Infections 101

You’ve likely heard of Candida or yeast infections. You may have even experienced one. In fact, this is a very common scenario that many Americans face every day.

Candidiasis is the term used to describe what we commonly call a yeast infection. It is estimated that there are 1.4 million outpatient visits for candidiasis in the United States each year.

Clearly this is something many Americans face…and anyone facing the challenges that yeast can cause knows how difficult they can be, which is why this information is so important.

If Candida is Supposed to be There, Why is it a Problem?

As long as it remains in balance, Candida is not a problem. But Candidais opportunistic, which means that their presence doesn’t cause disease under normal circumstances.

The trouble arises when our bodies get out of balance, possibly with a compromised immune system, giving the Candida a chance to go hog wild and grow out of control.

Problems occur when the something about the body changes or gets out of whack, creating an opportunity for the yeast to thrive and reproduce unchecked. Such changes may be an illness or weakened immunity, changes in pH due to medication or pregnancy, or other conditions in which the yeast cells flourish.

One of the things that keeps yeast growth under control under normal circumstances is the presence of beneficial bacteria in the gut and vagina. That’s why women frequently experience yeast infections after a round of antibiotics. The antibiotics tend to kill all bacteria, both bad and good, leaving the yeast unrestrained.

Common Types of Yeast Infections

Yeast grows in warm moist conditions. The most common places in and on the human body where Candida infections occur fit the description of the yeast’s ideal growth environment. Common names for fungal infections caused by yeast include:

Vaginal yeast infections
Jock itch
Thrush (yeast overgrowth in the mouth and/or throat)
Some diaper rash (not all diaper rash is fungal)
Athlete’s foot
Nail fungus (common on toenails and fingernails under artificial nails)

Whether kept warm and moist due to damp or tight-fitting clothing, socks and shoes, wet or dirty diapers, or just because it’s a warm, moist area of the body, Candida will take full advantage of these opportunities to flourish and can quickly get out of control.

While these conditions can all be painful, itchy, or bothersome, Candida infections can become even worse. Occurring most often in people with compromised immune systems, invasive candidiasis is even more serious. It can get into and affect the blood (candidemia), heart, brain, eyes, and bones.[3]

Candida can overtake the intestines producing gas and bloating. And it can overwork the liver, leading to serious complications like autoimmune disorders.

Drug Resistance

When a patient is seen by a physician and they determine that a fungal infection such as Candidiasis is present, an antifungal is usually prescribed. Often when experiencing a recurring infection, one may already know or believe that the cause of their discomfort is fungal… or perhaps they made a visit to Doctor Google. They may purchase over-the-counter antifungals such as fluconazole, miconazole nitrate, terbinafine hydrochloride, or clotrimazole… some of the many medications available for athlete’s foot and vaginal yeast infections.

Unfortunately, fungi, just like bacteria can, over time, become resistant to the drugs that we use to kill them. When a medication doesn’t kill all of the fungi, those that live are now resistant to that particular drug. Since they don’t need a mate to produce offspring, the surviving cells continue to reproduce with ease, all of their progeny now resistant… unable to be killed… by that antifungal medication.[4] A better solution is needed if we are to win the battle against yeast infection in the long run.

Silver to the Rescue

Silver has appeared in many forms over the years. Ionic silver consists of charged particles (ions) that are floating around in a solution. The problem with ionic silver is that the ions or particles fall out of solution, settling in a layer at the bottom… even after they have been consumed or taken into the body.

And when ionic silver falls out of solution in the body, the body can take on a bluish hue (no joke!).

Colloidal silver is a huge improvement over ionic silver in that the charges are more powerful. Like ionic silver, however, colloidal silver may still separate out of solution leading to… more blue-tinted skin.

With silver sol and silver hydrosol, the charged particles are bonded to water molecules, so they are much more stable and remain in solution. The big problem with these forms of silver is their acidity.

That’s why we created our Alkaline Structured Silver, which is pH balanced to 7.4 Alkalinity to work with the body and immune system.

Alkalinity and the Human Body

The human body is alkaline by nature… it’s pH is higher than 7.0. (It ranges from between 7.35 to 7.45.) Alkaline is the opposite of acidic. The immune system has a tendency to reject things that it sees as foreign… things that don’t belong. Acidic silvers like colloidal, silver sol, and silver hydrosol are among the things that the body tends to reject.

Enter alkaline structured silver.

With alkaline structured silver, its alkaline nature means that rather than being rejected by the immune system as is the case with the other forms of silver mentioned above which are acidic in nature, it works with the body and the immune system.

Alkaline Structured Silver Kills Yeast Cells

Structured silver in the presence of yeast causes the apoptosis of the fungal cells.[5] It’s important to note that although apoptosis is sometimes called programmed cell death, that description does not apply to the killing of yeast cells by structured silver. Structured silver does not trigger a pre-programmed cellular suicide.

A more fitting definition of apoptosis as it pertains to the killing of yeast cells, is that the cell’s parts, or components, break down or collapse.[6] This cellular breakdown is kicked off thanks to the destruction of the cellular membrane by the structured silver.

Alkaline structured silver, which is bonded to pure, distilled water molecules, has a tetrahedral, crystalline structure. It attacks microbes in multiple ways. Simply put, it starts by stealing an electron from a nearby microbe’s cellular membrane. It then fires off an electron to another one… killing both of the cells (the one it stole from and the one it fired at). It destroys not only fungi, but also bacteria and viruses.

So, when structured silver is exposed to Candida or other infectious fungi, the silver attacks the cell walls of the yeast.[7] The yeast cells then break down, no longer able to hold themselves together.

Other forms of silver, like colloidal silver, are a “one and done” sort of deal. Each molecule can only steal one electron and then it’s chemically complete, having neutralized it’s charge. It becomes inactive after it kills one cell.

Alkaline structured silver works overtime. After firing off that extra electron, it’s hungry for another… and it finds it in the cell walls of the fungi (or bacteria or viruses).

Is Structured Silver as Effective as Antifungal Medications in Fighting Yeast Infections?

By now you may be wondering if silver is as good as the antifungal drugs on the market? In short, the answer is absolutely!

Studies have shown structured silver to be more effective than fluconazole, one of the leading antifungals on the market today.[8]

Considering the problems with antifungal resistance, alkaline structured silver could very well be the solution to the drug resistance problem.

The Origins of Silver

One of the many uses for silver in today’s world is as an antifungal or antimycotic… a substance used as a fungicide in and on the human body. Among other things, structured silver is very effective in combating yeast infections.

But how in the world did we discover that consuming this incredible metal was the way to cure our ills?

Silver actually has a long history. From silver water vessels to colloidal silver, the precious metal has been used for centuries to protect the health of people across the globe.

Silver is one of the first five metals discovered by our human ancestors. (The other four are gold, copper, lead, and iron.) Evidence of its use goes back over 6,000 years… to ancient Greece, Anatolia (which is now Turkey), and Sumer.[9]

Silver’s use in drinkware such as pitchers and cups served to kill off harmful and potentially deadly bacteria and microbes long before people knew or understood its effects… before they knew that bacteria, microbes, or germs even existed.

It is said that Herodotus, the 5th century BCE Greek writer known as the “Father of History,” reported that the Persian kings would only drink water that had been kept in silver containers. In civilizations such as the Roman Empire, Ancient Egypt, Greece, and Phoenicia, the use of silver containers helped to preserve the water and food.[10]

This use of silver to maintain the freshness of food and drink continued throughout history until modern times… through the end of the second world war.

Even in the early days of American colonization when the European-American pioneers took to the road and traveled west, silver coins were placed in water containers to keep it safe to drink during the long and arduous journeys.

Silver coins placed in milk containers slowed its rate of spoilage. And by the 19th century storage containers made of silver were being used to preserve not just water and milk, but also vinegar and wine.

Silver Shows Up in Medicine

Evidence of the use of silver for medical purposes is seen as far back as the Macedonian times. Even the 5th century BCE Greek physician Hippocrates, the “Father of Medicine,” is known to have used it for healing wounds and treating ulcers in his patients.

Members of wealthy families, who ate with silver utensils (a/k/a silverware) were known to develop that bluish skin we talked about earlier. This argyria, as it was referred to, reportedly provided protection from disease with death rates being lower among blue-skinned people during times of plague and other disease outbreaks.

Fast forward to the 21st century… we don’t drop silver coins in our milk jugs and water bottles any longer.

And unless you live on the planet Pandora, home of James Cameron’s 2009 Avatars, blue skin is no longer in style.

But silver is still the rock star microbial that it’s always been. Fortunately, we have alkaline structured silver.

In more modern history, silver has taken the form of colloidal silver, silver nitrate, and silver hydrosol. But its most effective form to date is alkaline structured silver.

Purchase your kit using my discount here.

Article written by Dr. Gordon Pedersen, Ph.D

References

[1] The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, Yeast, Encyclopædia Britannica, February 06, 2019

[2] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Candidiasis

[3] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Invasive Candidiasis

[4] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Antifungal Resistance

[5] Hwang, I. , Lee, J. , Hwang, J. H., Kim, K. and=-098765Lee, D. G. (2012), Silver nanoparticles induce apoptotic cell death in Candida albicans through the increase of hydroxyl radicals. The FEBS Journal, 279: 1327-1338. doi:10.1111/j.1742-4658.2012.08527.x

[6] Apoptosis: definition, mechanisms, and relevance to disease, The American Journal of Medicine, ISSN: 0002-9343, Vol: 107, Issue: 5, Page: 489-506, Pub. 1999

[7] Kim KJ1, Sung WS, Suh BK, Moon SK, Choi JS, Kim JG, Lee DG,Biometals. 2009 Apr;22(2):235-42. doi: 10.1007/s10534-008-9159-2. Epub 2008 Sep 4, Antifungal activity and mode of action of silver nanoparticles on Candida albicans

[8] Kim KJ1, Sung WS, Moon SK, Choi JS, Kim JG, Lee DG, J Microbiol Biotechnol. 2008 Aug;18(8):1482-4, Antifungal effect of silver nanoparticles on dermatophytes

[9] Chemicool, Silver Element Facts

[10] Alexander, James. (2009). History of the Medical Use of Silver. Surgical infections. 10. 289-92. 10.1089/sur.2008.9941.