Diabetes and Recurring Candida LINK Exposed

Diabetes mellitus is a disorder in which the body does not produce enough insulin and the blood glucose levels are abnormally high. The insulin helps move the sugar from the blood to the cells where it is used as energy. Women having diabetes mellitus are more prone to recurring Candida infections. But the opposite is also true. Recurrent Candida infections may also be a sign of undiagnosed diabetes mellitus.

Women with recurring Candidiasis, that is four or more infections per year, must be screened for diabetes. If the glycemia or blood glucose is poorly controlled vaginal Candidiasis is a common problem. Yeast cells normally live in the vagina and their numbers are kept in control by the acidic environment and the beneficial bacteria which allow only a minimal amount of nutrients to be available to the Candida.  Due to the higher blood glucose levels in diabetic women, their vaginal secretions contain high amounts of glucose which nourishes the Candida and they multiply unchecked.

Apart from the elevated blood glucose in diabetic patients, their immune response also shows some aberrations making them prone to recurring Candida. Even in non-diabetic women with recurring Candida, the tolerance to glucose is discretely impaired. The hyperglycemia limits the action of neutrophils as a result of which diabetics are not able to clear the Candida as well as non-diabetics. The high blood sugar affects not only the immune system but also the nervous and circulatory system. This further leads to breakdown of natural barriers to infection. It was found that in diabetics, the incidence of infection with Candida glabrata was more than with the more common Candida albicans. Candida glabrata is less responsive to normal medications than Candida albicans.

Diabetics are overall at an increased risk to common infections. The recurrent use of antibiotics in diabetics makes them more prone to recurrent Candidiasis. The infections may worsen glucose control leading to further delays in recovery from the infection. Any infection in a person with diabetes poses a risk because as the body tries to fight the infection the blood sugar levels may fluctuate wildly from very low to very high, which could be potentially life-threatening in diabetics.

There are many antifungal medications available over the counter. But it is critical that patients with diabetes go to a medical practitioner and plan out treatment best suited to them. This is because the antifungal medications interact with regular medications.