Yeast Infection and Dry Eyes

[acarol]

Is there a link between Dry Eyes and a yeast infection?

[rhad]

yes, I believe their is. I think it could also depend on if your get chronic yeast infections that keep coming back. if you have chronic yeast infection that always returns it could mean that the bacteria in your body is out of balance, or your immune system is low which keep this bacteria in check.

rhad

[acarol]

I was told i have a yeast infection at present.
I also have a skin condition called Tinea Versicolor which is caused by an overgrowth of yeast on the skin surface. Its a very common condition seemingly. I also get recurrent sinius and had a toe nail fungus that had to treat by antibotics. I seem to have a lot of yeast / fungal related problems aswell as the dry eye problem.

[rhad]

I think I am going to start a new thread, I need some information from people on here that have MGD/Blepharitis.

when I was younger and heard of people I knew that had gotten cancer or other disease, my parents always told me that "sometimes, people just get cancer or have health problems", they acted as if people just got diseases for no reason at all.

one thing I have thought is that people don't just get diseases. they develop over a period of time. this means that maybe a few years before, things were happening with their bodies that were leading to this so-called disease. their were other symptoms or things that they notice, but do not think much of them.

You could almost think of disease like a Dam. Usually A river flows smoothly, but little by little some branches fall off of the trees along the bank of the river, these branches find their way down the river to a narrow part of the river where they lodge against the bank, more branches follow over the months or perhaps years, until the river has slowed and a dam has formed.

what I am trying to say is that maybe if we each look back on the years leading up to our Dry eye problems we will begin to identify that other symptoms or problems were happening at that time, showing us that something was starting to malfunction. if we could make a thread about this, I believe that would be the most beneficial for this site. I know that I could even share what I have noticed about how my dry eye really started.

rhad

[acarol]

Ya that would be interesting. Do you still have dry eyes or have you found a 'cure'?

[rubyslippers]

I never thought of this. I just took a yeast medication yesterday because I had female symptoms. I wake at night with my skin itching. It is very annoying. I thought it was just dry skin. I wonder if there is a connection. My eyes were worse in the last 2 days. Since I took the Diflucan, both my female symptoms and my eyes are better.

[Plat]

Rhad, great idea. Start the new thread. I will also share that 1.5 yeras ago I had a yeast infection(I am male) in the private area, and I went to 10 doctors just because I would always itch, all the doctors gave me steriod cream and just brushed it off like it was nothing. Then one year after I got this I went to yet another doctor and he told me to get Canesten Jock Itch Over the Counter cream. It went away in 1 week after one year of doctors giving me hydrocortisone cream. So 10 Doctors were treating it like a bacterial infection, when it was fungus. Both my girlfirend and I had the yeast infection at the same time,
so we caught from one another.

I will also add that whenver I had the slightest sore throat I went to the doctor and they gave me penicillin. So I use to take penicillin like it was candy. I just wanted my sore throat to go away. Penicillin kills the good bacteria I now know and cause problems.

Also, if yeast is a problem, then Doxy is probably not a good idea. I took that for 4 months( 2 months on, 1 month break and then 2 months on) and noticed that skin was better, but can't say much about the eyes.

If you start your new thread, I can add lots to the years prior to getting the dry eyes.

[rhad]

I'm glad you think it is a good idea, because not alot of people on this forum agree with my ideas....I'll have to talk to Rebecca, and see if it would be possible.

rhad

[NYer]

Probiotics, Yeast, and Dry Eye

Hi ACarol,

You would benefit greatly by taking a good probiotic supplement daily.

Your body contains billions of bacteria and other microorganisms. Probiotics are the helpful bacteria that normally inhabit the human digestive tract. They assist with digestion and help your body protect against harmful bacteria.

("Anti" biotics kill bacteria (bacteria = biotics)..."Pro" biotics are, themselves, bacteria...but they're good bacteria. They don't "kill" bad bacteria. They push them out and don't leave room for them in your system.)

Probiotics occur naturally in cultured milk products, such as yogurt with active cultures. You can eat lots of yogurt, but since you've been having ongoing recurrances of various types of yeast infections, I'd recommend that you take a supplement. The amount in yogurt probably wouldn't make much difference for you. Anyway, you can't take too much of it (you can't overdose on it - you'll excrete what you don't use), so get a good potent one. Most of them have to be refrigerated.

One really common problem that leads to yeast overgrowth, by the way, is antibiotics. Some antibiotics wipe out "friendly" intestinal bacteria along with the bad bugs that cause infections. And the "friendly" bacteria normally keep yeast in check - so this results in yeast infections. Probiotics inhibit the reproduction of "bad" bacteria in your GI tract that contribute to bowel, vaginal, respiratory, and urinary tract infections.

They also support your immune system really well. I didn't get a cold for a year and a half while taking them and I usually get colds a few times a year!

So, regarding whether or not your dry eye is related to yeast, the simple answer is no. And taking probiotics will help your yeast infections but it isn't going to do much of anything for your dry eyes. There is no particular correlation between dry eyes and yeast other than the fact that if you constantly have an overgrowth of bad bacteria in your system and you have a weakened immune system, your immune system isn't exactly going to be able to keep busy fighting whatever is causing the dry eye.

In a larger sense, though, your body isn't a bunch of separate parts having nothing to do with each other - so if one part is ailing, your system doesn't have the strength to help the other parts. The holistic viewpoint (looking at the body as a whole) would be to support your immune system to help fight your dry eyes and probiotics are good for your immune system.

Hope this helps you.
-NYer

[acarol]

Hi ACarol,

You would benefit greatly by taking a good probiotic supplement daily.

Your body contains billions of bacteria and other microorganisms. Probiotics are the helpful bacteria that normally inhabit the human digestive tract. They assist with digestion and help your body protect against harmful bacteria.

("Anti" biotics kill bacteria (bacteria = biotics)..."Pro" biotics are, themselves, bacteria...but they're good bacteria. They don't "kill" bad bacteria. They push them out and don't leave room for them in your system.)

Probiotics occur naturally in cultured milk products, such as yogurt with active cultures. You can eat lots of yogurt, but since you've been having ongoing recurrances of various types of yeast infections, I'd recommend that you take a supplement. The amount in yogurt probably wouldn't make much difference for you. Anyway, you can't take too much of it, so get a good potent one. Most of them have to be refrigerated.

One really common problem that leads to yeast overgrowth, by the way, is antibiotics. Some antibiotics wipe out "friendly" intestinal bacteria along with the bad bugs that cause infections. And the "friendly" bacteria normally keep yeast in check - so this results in yeast infections. Probiotics inhibit the reproduction of "bad" bacteria in your GI tract that contribute to bowel, vaginal, respiratory, and urinary tract infections.

They also support your immune system really well. I didn't get a cold for a year and a half while taking them and I usually get colds a few times a year!

So, regarding whether or not your dry eye is related to yeast, the simple answer is no. And taking probiotics will help your yeast infections but it isn't going to do much of anything for your dry eyes. There is no particular correlation between dry eyes and yeast other than the fact that if you constantly have an overgrowth of bad bacteria in your system and you have a weakened immune system, your immune system isn't exactly going to be able to keep busy fighting whatever is causing the dry eye.

In a larger sense, though, your body isn't a bunch of separate parts having nothing to do with each other - so if one part is ailing, your system doesn't have the strength to help the other parts. The holistic viewpoint (looking at the body as a whole) would be to support your immune system to help fight your dry eyes and probiotics are good for your immune system.

Hope this helps you.
-NYer

Thanks for that. What pro-biotic supplement would you recommend?

The Doctor recommended taking 'Flagyl' tablets for a week for this bacterial infection that i have.

[NYer]

I like Natren (www.natren.com). Pricey but very good quality. I have no idea, though, if you can get them where you are.
You have to take the Flagyl that the doctor prescribed. A bacterial infection requires the use of an antibiotic. However, while you are taking the antibiotic (Flagyl), take the probiotic to keep the antibiotic from wiping out all your GOOD bacteria, too, and causing a yeast infection. Wait two hours minimum between taking any antibiotic and a probiotic. Otherwise, they'll render each other fairly useless.

[acarol]

I like Natren (www.natren.com). Pricey but very good quality. I have no idea, though, if you can get them where you are.
You have to take the Flagyl that the doctor prescribed. A bacterial infection requires the use of an antibiotic. However, while you are taking the antibiotic (Flagyl), take the probiotic to keep the antibiotic from wiping out all your GOOD bacteria, too, and causing a yeast infection. Wait two hours minimum between taking any antibiotic and a probiotic. Otherwise, they'll render each other fairly useless.

Thanks for that - i will try the health food shop for it.

Ya i will start taking the Flagyl next week as i am going on a weekend away this weekend (where there will be alcohol involved..) so i asked the Doctor would it be ok to start next week and she said it would be fine.
I have Eye appointment next week and i am going to ask for Doxy to see would it help my MGD. I know a lot of antibotics aren't good but i have tried the 'natural' approaches (warm compresses / steaming, flax seed oil etc), while they help a little i think i need to try Doxy to see will it 'kick start' things a bit for me. Obviously i won't take the Flagyl and Doxy together.

[Plat]

Rhad, how, on a percentage basis, has what you have being doing helped your eyes so far? What symptoms have improved if any?

Thanks

[rhad]

well, I don't know about percentage wise, but these are thing that have improved:

No more brain fog, swollen eyelids going down, no itching or burning eyes or eyelids, vision is improving, i can see better now without glasses, used to have alot of floaters in my eyes, they are almost completely gone. eyes feel more moist, but not 100% back to how they should be, my eyes don't feel to bad if I don't read book for too long, or use computer for too long. I think i just need more time for my eyes to heal, and body to heal for things to be cured.

rhad

[Plat]

Rhad, thanks for sharing. On scale of 1 to 10, how much to do you think yeast/Candida is a factor?