Comprehensive Stool Analysis With Psoriasis

Comprehensive Stool Analysis With Psoriasis

Functional Medicine Testing And Psoriasis

Comprehensive stool analysis with psoriasis makes a lot of sense. Have you read my book entitled The Psoriasis and Candida Connection yet? You will need to get hold of a copy of The Psoriasis Program if you want to learn all about the connection between psoriasis and candida yeast infection.

This is important information, because research has shown that up the three-quarters or more of those with psoriasis have in fact an underlying yeast infection.

The identification of abnormal levels of yeast species, bacteria and parasites in the stool is an important diagnostic step in therapeutic planning for patients in our clinic with chronic gastrointestinal and other symptoms that may be linked with psoriasis. The CDSA test provides me the clinician with a wide array of the most useful clinical information to help me plan my most appropriate treatment protocol that is quite specific to you – the individual patient.

You may be thinking right now, what on earth does a stool test have to do with my psoriasis? Why would I want to do a stool test if my problem is my skin? How can they be linked, wouldn’t I be looking in the wrong area if I have a problem with skin and not my digestive tract? I can tell you this, if you optimize your digestive system, you stand the best chance of beating your psoriasis. A 2001 study1 showed a clear cut link between a candida overgrowth in the digestive system and psoriasis. In fact, over three-quarters of those with psoriasis have a yeast infection.1

Your doctor or skin specialist (dermatologist) may have you thinking that there is nothing wrong with your digestive system, and that treatment should be primarily aimed at your skin and not your digestive system nor diet. Wrong thinking. Your immune system is at fault with psoriasis, which you may well be aware of. The drugs your doctor or skin specialist prescribes are often immune-suppressing drugs. It is worth mentioning that your small intestine has a very high concentration of your immune system in it, in fact, some experts say as high as 60 percent. Does it not make sense to optimize the function of your digestive and immune system? It does to me, and nearly every single chronic psoriasis case will have some kind of digestive problem that needs fixing up. Can you also remember (see The Psoriasis and Candida Connection) that previously I’ve mentioned of the connection between a candida yeast infection and psoriasis, and that many experts have noticed a very definite link between the two? The stool test will give you the answers you are looking for in terms of the health of your digestive system and what you can do to optimize its function.

While this test is not for everybody, it is expensive, but it can help to solve some of the most difficult psoriasis cases by providing me with all the answers I am looking for. The CDSA x 3 with parasitology is the most comprehensive and commonly ordered functional stool test, assessing the widest range of intestinal conditions. This test will provide information on your ability to digest, metabolise, and absorb nutrients, as well as report all bacterial flora (beneficial, imbalanced and disease causing, all yeasts, and all intestinal parasites (worms, eggs, larva, and protozoa).

It is important to analyse both the intestinal digestion/absorption functions as well as the levels of yeast, bacteria, and parasites because symptoms of mal-digestion or mal-absorption often mimic those of chronic bacterial, yeast, or parasitic infections. Additionally, chronic bacterial, yeast, or parasitic infections may have adverse effects on the body’s metabolic and absorptive processes, which can all be assessed using this most comprehensive test.

As you probably aware by now after reading my other books about psoriasis, most patients with psoriasis have an underlying digestive issue, and correct assessment and treatment of these issues is a sure fire way to get your health in top shape. Most patients I have seen over the years that have psoriasis, come into my clinic with some kind of digestive symptom which often includes varying degrees of some of these complaints: abdominal pain, cramping, bloating, gas, diarrhea or constipation and/or various forms of digestive irritations.

Yeasts, bacteria and various pathogens such as parasites are not uniformly dispersed throughout the stool, which is a good reason why you should insist on three stool samples, and by only having one sample performed it may lead to undetectable or low levels of yeast for example identified by microscopy, despite a cultured amount of yeast. Conversely, microscopic examination may reveal a significant amount of yeast present, but no yeast cultured. Having three stool samples assayed, and NOT all mixed together and assayed as one sample, something many labs do, you are increasing your chances of yeast detection.

While candida does not always survive transit through the digestive tract rendering it unviable, the microscopic finding of yeast in the stool is helpful in identifying whether there is proliferation of yeast or not. Although some yeast may be normal; yeast observed in higher amounts is considered abnormal.

Try Not To Bathe Every Single Day

I have found that some psoriasis patients can even want to bathe twice daily, thinking that they are healing the skin faster, when in fact they cause a problem with the skin. You see, your skin will want to dry out after it gets wet, and it can dry out too much if proper care is not taking right afterward. And dry skin can be a real nightmare for someone who suffers from psoriasis because dry skin can mean itchy and cracked skin. Having an itchy skin can lead to yet another flare-up, and so the cycle continues.

There is nothing wrong with taking a shorter shower or bath, and if the weather is not too hot it may pay to have your shower every second day. You could even hand wash some parts of your body, avoiding any areas which are currently flared up which will save them from getting too wet (and drying out afterward).

My Personal Choice Of Testing For Psoriasis Is Functional Stool Testing

Personally I like the CDSA test the best out of all the functional tests because it goes right to the heart of the problem, the digestive system. The CDSA give me the most useful information of all the tests, and here are the main points this test reveals:

Bacteriology culture Yeast culture Parasitology microscopy Giardia and cryptosporidium assay Digestion & absorption markers (elastase, fat stain, muscle & veg. fibres, carbs) Inflammatory markers (lysozyme, lactoferrin, white blood cells, mucus) Immunology (secretory IgA – sIgA) Short chain fatty acids (the end product of bacterial fermentation of beneficial bacteria in the bowel) Intestinal health markers (red blood cells, pH, occult blood) Macroscopic (visual) appearance

The CDSA test in my opinion is the Rolls Royce of digestive tests, and if you can afford the price tag then you should definitely do this test, no question about it. I have solved an amazing amount of difficult right through to “impossible” psoriasis cases with this test, when all else failed the patient.

1. Mycoses. 2001 May;44(3-4):77-81. Incidence of Candida in psoriasis–a study on the fungal flora of psoriatic patients. Waldman A, Gilhar A, Duek L, Berdicevsky I.

Candida, Psoriasis And Your Immune System

Candida, Psoriasis And Your Immune System

Candida, psoriasis, and your immune system all share a common connection. Once in the bloodstream, candida acts as a typical allergen and is capable of creating typical various types of allergic reactions. There is no doubt, candida and allergies are commonly found together, and this is one of the major ways in which candida can cause many of the potential health complaints.

You may want to read my booklet called Psoriasis Stress And Immunity; it will explain about the connection between stress and your immune system and is certainly worthy of a read.

Article of interest:

Not everybody with candida has an allergy, though most candida patients I have seen have food and environmental allergies or sensitivities to some degree. You will often see food allergy test (ELISA blood test) results in candida patients revealing an allergy to one or even several foods. See my booklet called Psoriasis And Functional Medicine Testing for a good explanation. Allergic sensitivities to molds and fungi often develop in those with candida overgrowth in their intestines, and for this reason, some have reactions in damp or moldy environments.

Alcohol Is Most Important To Eliminate If You Are Serious About Psoriasis Recovery!

For this reason also, a reaction to alcohol can be the result of both a candida infestation and an allergy to the yeasts used to ferment the alcohol particularly if wines, beers and ciders are being consumed. Alcohol is the most important thing to eliminate first from your diet, and it proves for most yeast sufferers also to be the most difficult. Many people with candida have a strong desire for it, but alcohol must go, yeasty foods like breads need to be stopped for a while and sweet treats like chocolate and candies need to be stopped as well. These food items encourage yeast proliferation that in turn will encourage immune dysfunction.

Do you react strongly to alcohol? Then candida alone is often the main culprit, especially if your psoriatic skin lesions or digestive system flares up within a day. This problem is often compounded by the other sugary and fermented foods you consume, such as breads, cheeses, yoghurts, commercial (cheap) vinegars and moldy foods like mushrooms, dried fruits and melons.

Most people know that drinking too much alcohol causes a hangover. But what about the many patients I have seen whom only drink small to moderate amounts and experience reactions the following day out of proportion to how much alcohol they consumed the previous day? If you are becoming increasingly reactive to alcohol (even a small glass each day), then you must STOP it, or pay the price.

Avoid Left-Over Foods For The Refrigerator

You will see when you read the Psoriasis Diet, that it is not a good idea to eat left-over foods from your refrigerator the next day, because molds and spores can proliferate on these foods overnight in your refrigerator.

In my observation, the typical psoriasis patient has multiple allergies and they can in addition even develop multiple chemical sensitivities as well as inhalant allergies. These allergies and sensitivities improve dramatically and eventually disappear as the yeast and sugar-containing foods and drinks are withdrawn, the candida population is reduced and balance is once again restored to the digestive system in particular. When the small intestine is healed, their immune system is healed as well and a person’s sensitivity to many substances drops.

Comprehensive Stool Testing Is Smart If You Have Psoriasis

Another common occurrence of elevated antibodies findings is with a stool test (CDSAx3), and I regularly find a reduction or an elevation of sIgA, (an antibody commonly found in the mucosa and digestive system) which also indicates a heightened immune response potentially revealing an underlying allergy. Many patients with chronic digestive problems who have had a stool or blood test performed will often have increased antibody markers as part of their test results, more so the blood based tests though than with the stool tests. You can read a lot more about the ELISA blood test for the IgG/IgA antibody levels and the CDSA x 3 stool test in my booklet entitled Psoriasis And Functional Medicine Testing, later in the Psoriasis Program.

 

 

 

 

 

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