Prescription vs. Natural Antifungals

Which is better when fighting off yeast?

When on the Kaufmann Diet, many people wonder what they can do in addition changing their diet to really fight off pathogenic yeast inside or on the body. There are a wide variety of natural antifungals that are readily available in supplement form. But how do these stack up against prescription antifungals?

In truth, your diet is absolutely your first line of defense against pathogenic yeasts and fungi. Without changing your diet, any additional supplementation is unlikely to be effective. Simply put, you must eliminate sugar, most carbohydrates, and most forms of starch if you are to starve yeast and fungi. You must also pay attention to foods that contain fungal poisons (mycotoxins). The Kaufmann Diet minimizes exposure to these foods, and the details are found in all of Doug Kaufmann’s books.

Changing your diet to maximize the efficacy of supplements is necessary not just in the case of fighting fungi, but with any health benefit that any supplements claim. Many people errantly believe all they must do to achieve good health is take some supplements, never addressing their poor diet. Often, people are misled into believing that supplements do not work for this very reason.

This is an important rule; supplements are just that––supplemental. They are supplemental to other factors that contribute to good health, namely diet, and exercise.

In the case of fungi, however, we have a wide variety of powerful and natural anti-fungal supplements available to us. These include essential oils, such as oil of oregano, clove oil, cinnamon oil, coconut oil, and tea tree oil (which should only be used topically). Other potent antifungal supplements include garlic, olive leaf extract, grape seed extract, and grapefruit seed extract.

 
These are only a few of the anti-fungal supplements that are available to us, but most of these (and more) are likely available at your local health food stores. Most of these are incredibly safe; however, it is important to consult with your doctor before taking any supplements, particularly if you are on any type of medication or soon to have a medical procedure. 

Prescription Anti-Fungals: A Powerful Tool

Prescription antifungals can only be obtained with a doctor’s prescription. For some, it can be difficult to get a prescription for anti-fungal drugs, simply because most doctors do not know much about the fungus link to health problems. Many of them assume that fungi have very little to do with most health problems, save for very immunocompromised people.

Some doctors, however, are more open-minded to exploring the link between fungi and health problems, and some might choose to write you a prescription.

Prescription anti-fungal drugs are typically very potent and targeted. However, because they have warnings about serious side effects, they must be used with caution. This is in stark contrast to many of the natural anti-fungal supplements available.

But prescription antifungals are likely better at fighting fungi, right? Not necessarily.

Many studies have concluded that natural anti-fungal supplements often perform better than many prescription antifungals against certain species of yeast. Some essential oils like cinnamon and clove oil performed better than prescription drugs for certain patients with vaginal yeast infections.

Ultimately, it is important to realize that we have powerful, natural anti-fungal supplements available to us without a prescription that––in conjunction with diet––can assist us in eliminating pathogenic fungi from the body. This is not to discount prescription antifungals, either; these certainly have their place, too, and with your doctor’s supervision, constitute a powerful tool against pathogenic yeast and fungi.