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Diet for thrush
Medical expert of the article
Last reviewed: 04.07.2025
Dietary treatment of candidiasis plays no less an important role than drug treatment. It is not difficult to follow a diet for thrush and the products do not require any specific processing. The main thing is to remember about the balance, caloric content of dishes, and also to focus on products rich in B vitamins.
In case of thrush, it is necessary to exclude sugar and yeast products from the diet for at least 3 months (it is best to stick to the diet for a year) - this will help the body to restore the correct microflora without unnecessary things. With a sharp transition to prohibited products, the disease returns. The consumption of sugar, fatty foods, caffeine, mushroom dishes, yeast products, soda, spicy foods, various spices, alcohol (especially beer) should be minimal.
During thrush, it is very useful to eat beets, garlic, carrots, cucumbers, dill, parsley, plums, sour apples, and lemons. It is also not forbidden to eat yogurt without preservatives, fermented milk products, lean meat with vegetables, liver and other offal, seafood, lean fish, olive oil, eggs, and sesame. A positive result is observed when eating fresh vegetables. The menu should also include blueberries, sea buckthorn, and vitamin-rich infusions (rose hips, rowan berries, hawthorn, oregano, string leaves, and blackcurrant leaves and twigs can be added to the composition).
Treating thrush with diet in combination with antifungal drugs will help effectively deal with the pathogen and relieve discomfort.
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What is the diet for thrush?
What diet for thrush will promote a speedy recovery? First of all, you should eat regularly and in a balanced manner, the food should contain a minimum of sugar and yeast fungi and a maximum of vitamins. The diet is appropriate not only during the treatment of the disease, but also after a fixed recovery, as well as for the prevention of relapses. So, the diet for candidiasis should consist of:
- Some fermented milk products (natural yogurt without additives and colorings, kefir, butter, sour milk).
- Vegetables and legumes in any form - fresh, stewed, baked, but fried vegetables are best limited or excluded altogether.
- Greens of dill, parsley, seaweed, offal, seafood, lean meat, fish, cooked in foil or boiled.
- Flaxseed, olive oil, pumpkin seeds and sesame seeds (you can make salad dressings based on these products).
- Fruits and berries, but only sweet and sour ones - plums, lemons, apples, sea buckthorn, blueberries, cranberries, etc.
- Porridge made from natural grains (rice, barley, buckwheat, millet).
For example, you can have a breakfast of apple and cabbage salad, boiled eggs, rye bread with butter, herbal tea or infusion. Have lunch with chicken broth with vegetables, baked fish, orange or grapefruit juice. Have dinner with cabbage rolls, baked pumpkin, apple-plum compote - this is an approximate menu for thrush, there can be many variations of dishes.
Diet for thrush in women
Diet for thrush in women is one of the main conditions for successful treatment. The main condition of the diet for candidiasis is that all products should be natural, not contain preservatives and dyes, fortified with vitamins (especially useful are vitamins B1, B2, B3, B6, B7, B9, B12, PABA), with antifungal and immunomodulatory action.
A positive effect in the treatment of thrush is observed with frequent use of garlic and garlic extract, red hot pepper, propolis, grapefruit, tea tree extract, lemons, blueberries, sea buckthorn, cranberries, lingonberries and lingonberry leaf infusions.
Daily consumption of natural yoghurts that do not contain preservatives or fruit additives, sweet and sour fruits, and fresh vegetable juices has a detrimental effect on the growth of fungi.
It is also useful to eat lean boiled and baked meat, fish, stewed and baked vegetables, buckwheat, oatmeal, seafood and kelp, vitamin infusions and teas from rose hips, lingonberries, black currants. The diet should also include a small amount of eggs, nuts, spicy additives (cloves, bay leaves, cinnamon), and bran bread. But alcohol, sugar, confectionery, honey, white bread, milk, cheese, and mushroom dishes should be excluded - these foods contribute to the proliferation of Candida fungus.
By its nature, a diet for thrush in women does not require special skills and abilities in preparation, it is enough to simply adhere to the list of permitted products for at least a year and only in this way can you protect yourself from the recurrence of the disease and complications associated with it.
Diet for thrush during pregnancy
Diet for thrush during pregnancy plays an important role in the treatment mechanism, since medications are practically contraindicated during this period. Almost a third of women are diagnosed with thrush during pregnancy. Normally, the Candida fungus is present in the microflora of the vaginal mucosa, and during pregnancy, when immunity decreases, its growth progresses.
During pregnancy, proper nutrition helps fight thrush. The menu should include more beets and garlic, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, carrots, cucumbers, dill, parsley, plums, green, sweet and sour apples, lemons, natural yogurt, other fermented milk products, but milk, buns, sugar, honey, confectionery sweets should be consumed as little as possible, and it is better to completely exclude them. Boiled and baked meat, fish, offal, soft-boiled eggs, sesame seeds, pumpkin, nuts are useful. Particular attention should be paid to drinks - no sweet soda, only freshly squeezed juices from vegetables and unsweetened fruits, berry fruit drinks, vitamin infusions from lingonberry leaves, black currants and herbal teas (if there are no contraindications from the attending physician).
The diet for thrush during pregnancy should be strictly followed, as this is the safest way to combat fungi. Even if candidiasis does not cause much discomfort to the pregnant woman, do not forget that the woman is responsible for the health of the future child.
Diet for thrush in men
The diet for thrush in men is almost identical to the diet for women, but has a higher calorie content. Candidiasis in men is almost asymptomatic and is not always accompanied by discomfort, but this does not mean that the diagnosed disease can be ignored. In addition to antifungal and anti-inflammatory drugs, nutrition plays an important role in treatment. Diet is the best way to improve the health of the body and maintain the microflora of the mucous membranes.
It is necessary to adhere to a diet for candidiasis for at least three months, in more serious cases a year or more, otherwise the likelihood of difficult-to-treat relapses increases. The attending physician selects a dietary nutrition scheme individually, taking into account all the characteristics of the patient. Food should be rich in vitamins B6, B2, C and PP, protein, with a minimum carbohydrate content, milk, cheese and cheese products, sweets, pastries, buns, sweet fruits, alcohol (especially beer) are excluded. The daily menu should contain a lot of vegetables, berries, lean meat and fish in any form, except fried, are very useful. It is especially useful to consume natural yoghurts without preservatives and fruit additives, vitamin infusions, teas, fresh juices daily. One of the key goals of treatment is to model a strong immune system and slow down the growth and reproduction of Candida fungi.
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Diet for oral thrush
The diet for oral thrush should be mechanically and thermally gentle. The oral mucosa is very sensitive and inflamed during candidiasis, so food should not be too hot, it is better if liquid and pureed dishes prevail, without spices, not too spicy, lightly salted, not sour. After eating, the oral cavity should be rinsed with a disinfectant solution based on soda, borax, etc.
Bakery products, sweets and pastries, honey, caffeine-containing drinks, dairy products, mushroom dishes, sauces, hot spices, and alcohol are excluded from the diet. After the acute period has passed, the diet can be diversified with other permitted products - sweet and sour fruits, citrus fruits, yogurts without fruit jam and preservatives, yeast-free bread with bran, baked meat with vegetables, fish, garlic, spices, cereals, seeds, nuts, freshly squeezed juices. But in general, you need to adhere to a special diet for at least a year, even if complete recovery is confirmed by the laboratory. This is necessary to prevent relapses of thrush and complications associated with it. Otherwise, if you neglect the principles of treatment, fungi may develop resistance to drugs, and diet alone will no longer be able to cope with the disease.
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Diet menu for thrush
A specially designed diet menu for thrush will not only help to cope with the disease, but will also help cleanse the body and combat overeating. Excessive consumption of baked goods, sweets, and various pastries leads to accelerated growth of Candida fungi, which are normally present in the microflora of the oral mucosa, intestines, and vagina.
To cure thrush, you need to not only take the medications prescribed by your doctor, but also eat right. You need to stop taking:
- sweet fruits, white pasta, rice, baked goods, sweets.
- reduce the amount of canned food and foods with high preservative content.
- vinegar-based sauces.
- exclude alcohol for a month, then you can drink no more than a glass of dry wine.
When you have thrush, you can eat the following dishes based on permitted products:
- Have soft-boiled eggs for breakfast, fresh vegetable salad or natural yogurt with vegetable salad.
- Have lunch with stewed cabbage with boiled or baked meat, or vegetable soup with chicken breast, noodles with chicken.
- It is better to have a dinner of cottage cheese with added yogurt or a vegetable salad with yogurt.
By following the diet menu for thrush, you can completely get rid of relapses of the disease, but it is also important to remember that you need to eat at least 100 grams of yogurt every day, rice is also possible, but the daily norm is no more than 120 grams.
Diet recipes for thrush
Recipes for a diet for thrush are very easy to prepare, the food does not require special cooking conditions and significant financial costs. The menu should consist of fresh salads without vinegar-based dressings, casseroles, baked lean meat, fish, first courses. Below are examples of some dishes based on products that are useful for thrush.
Pumpkin and egg salad. Boiled pumpkin is cut into cubes, combined with chopped boiled eggs, celery, green onions, then everything is dressed with Greek yogurt, salted to taste.
Zucchini stew. Cut zucchini into cubes, combine with chopped sweet pepper, onion, garlic, add salt and let sit for a while. Then fry the vegetable mixture in olive oil, add vegetable broth or water, season with basil and simmer until done.
Chicken breast stewed with vegetables. Lightly fry carrots, add onion, chicken breast pieces, green beans. Fry everything for 5-7 minutes, add broth, salt and simmer until done.
Yogurt. Pour about a liter of boiled milk into a thermos, add 100 grams of yogurt or starter, a little cream, mix everything, close the thermos and leave for 4-10 hours. As soon as the mixture becomes thick, the yogurt can be used as a separate dish (adding seeds, nuts, pieces of sour apples, plums) or as a dressing for vegetable salads.
What can you eat if you have thrush?
"What can you eat with thrush?" - this is the question asked by everyone who has been given this unpleasant diagnosis. Thrush is a type of infection caused by a yeast-like fungus belonging to the genus Candida (hence the medical name of the disease - "candidiasis"). Normally, the Candida fungus is found in the mouth, large intestine, vagina of a healthy person, but when the growth of this type of fungus increases rapidly or infection with a stronger type of Candida occurs, thrush develops.
Fungi can be promoted by decreased immunity, long-term treatment with antibiotics, climacteric changes, poor intimate hygiene, contraceptives, and cases of thrush during pregnancy are not uncommon.
What can you eat with thrush? Of course, the diet should consist of foods that do not promote the growth of fungi. The menu should be based on dishes from vegetables, unsweetened fruits, lean meat and fish, cereals, whole grain bread, legumes, vitamin infusions based on rose hips, lingonberries, etc. The diet should be followed for as long as possible, preferably up to a year, otherwise, with a sharp change in diet and cessation of antifungal treatment, there is a high probability of a relapse of thrush. In the future, treatment will be longer due to the creation of a favorable environment for the growth of fungi and the development of resistance of the pathogen to drugs.
What should you not eat if you have thrush?
What should you not eat with thrush to avoid creating favorable conditions for the growth of Candida fungi? First of all, you need to eliminate from your diet or, if possible, reduce your intake as much as possible of foods that have a high percentage of sugar and simple carbohydrates. You should also exclude fruit juices, limit as much as possible the consumption of grapes, dried fruits, honey, white bread, baked goods, vinegar, alcohol (especially beer and beer drinks, low-alcohol cocktails), ketchup, mayonnaise, mustard, natural soy sauce, smoked sausages, meat. If thrush has developed in the mouth, then the food should be mashed, lightly salted, not too hot, so as not to injure the affected mucous membrane once again.
The diet should be followed for a long time even after further recovery. It is important to understand that if in the early period after recovery you give the body a shock dose of sugar-containing products, products with chemical additives, then an exacerbation will not take long to come. Also, for seasonal prevention, when the body receives few vitamins, it is necessary to take vitamin complexes, in some cases, on the recommendation of a doctor, the use of prebiotics, vitamins of group B is indicated.