My Anti-Candida Protocol: A Traditional Chinese Medicine Approach
Now that you understand my theory, let's talk about what I'm actually doing to combat this fungal overgrowth and repair my gut lining.
Being a nutritional therapist, I had a general idea going in about how to clear candida. But honestly? I wasn't thrilled with the standard approach. Cutting out all forms of sugar didn't make sense to me. How are we supposed to get energy without forcing our bodies into gluconeogenesis? How do we maintain balanced blood sugar and prevent crashes?
I decided to dig deeper and see if there was another way.
Enter Traditional Chinese Medicine
I came across a video of Dr. Axe explaining the anti-candida protocol, and it echoed everything I already knew. Cut out sugar of all kinds, including honey and most fruits. But then he said something that caught my attention.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), candida essentially means you have "warmth and dampness" circulating in your body that needs to be balanced out.
This got me thinking. Why not add a TCM spin to this anti-candida diet? TCM is incredibly effective, so why not incorporate it and see if it helps?
From there, I went to Claude AI (no, this isn't an ad). I told it I was fighting fungal overgrowth with leaky gut, wanted to go on an anti-candida diet, but from a TCM perspective while keeping in mind that I can struggle with low blood sugar on occasion.
When I tell you it gave me SO much information from the TCM perspective! It was incredible, and something I'm genuinely considering studying after I finish my current round of schooling.
My TCM Diagnosis
According to TCM principles, I have:
Weak spleen (which affects digestion and metabolism)
Poor blood circulation
Damp heat circulating through my body (which makes sense considering fungus thrives in warm, damp environments)
The AI gave me an entire week's meal plan that addressed all of these factors and explained what each type of food would help with. Honestly, it all seemed really doable and actually sounded delicious.
TCM dietary principles I'm following:
Warming foods to support spleen function (ginger, cinnamon, cooked foods vs. raw)
Drying foods to clear dampness (bitter greens, mushrooms, adzuki beans)
Cooling foods to clear heat (leafy greens, cucumber, celery)
Blood-moving foods to improve circulation (turmeric, garlic, onions)
Avoiding cold and raw foods that weaken the spleen
Starting meals with warm liquids to support digestion
There wasn't really much out of the ordinary in terms of food. It's really just going about it without sweeteners of any kind, which can be challenging. Because who doesn't love stir fry with a little honey in the sauce or oatmeal with a tiny bit of real maple syrup?
Reintroducing Forgotten Foods
I will say, we reintroduced a ton of foods I haven't had in quite some time. Not that we don't like or want them, we just never think of them and get stuck in the same routine.
So we went to the store and bought mushrooms for the first time in a long time. Let me tell you, a good mushroom scramble with some onion, garlic, thyme, and wilted arugula totally hits the spot.
We got bok choy and snap peas again and added them to our stir fry. We're big fans of Swiss chard, so we grabbed a bunch of that to have as a side with dinner.
We also had to get some things I wasn't excited about, like quinoa and cauliflower rice. I have to stay away from starches because they turn easily into sugars that feed the candida, so rice and white potatoes are out of the question for now. Which is sad, because we love both of those things in this house.
What I'm Actually Eating
If you're wondering what a sample day of my meals looks like with TCM understanding, here you go:
Morning: Start the day with hot water with fresh lemon and ginger. Wait around 30 minutes, then have breakfast. (This supports spleen function and prepares digestion.)
Breakfast: Two fried eggs over sautéed onions, mushrooms, and wilted arugula. Plus a large mug of steel cut oats with a splash of coconut milk, vanilla, and cinnamon, topped with ground flaxseed, walnuts, and blueberries. Another cup of hot water with lemon and ginger alongside breakfast.
Lunch: I've been living for chicken soup. I like to think I make some of the best chicken soup (not to boast). But honestly, it's incredibly healing when made with the right ingredients.
The broth should be gelatinous and basically turn into jello when it's been sitting in the fridge. That gelatin is extremely soothing for the intestinal lining and helps repair leaky gut. So you want broth that's rich in gelatin.
I like to make the broth myself, or my favorite brand from the store is Kettle & Fire. I add tons of herbs to my soup for flavor like rosemary and thyme, lots of Italian seasoning (because what doesn't taste good with Italian seasoning?), turmeric, and a really good-sized knob of fresh minced ginger. All of these flavors are so good together and it honestly feels like it's healing my soul.
If I don't have soup, I'll just have leftovers from dinner the previous night.
Dinner: Honestly, pretty simple. We're just expanding our palate for protein a little bit. We're adding more fish here and there (it's not that I don't like it, it's more that fish isn't dense enough for me and doesn't fill me up). We've also been adding grass-fed lamb, which has been a fun change and so delicious!
Then we have the other basic proteins like grass-fed beef and pasture-raised, or at the very least, organic chicken.
One night I made Thai coconut chicken curry with a super easy sweetener-free curry sauce. I stir-fried some chicken with bell peppers and snap peas, added the sauce, and had it over a bit of quinoa (my favorite... eh, it did the job). It was honestly so good and very warming, especially since it's getting colder.
We've also made shepherd's pie with grass-fed lamb. Honestly, as much as I don't love her, Sophia Bush's recipe for it is actually really good.
Or we'll have wild-caught cod baked with lemon slices, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning (told you it was my favorite), with some roasted spaghetti squash on the side and sautéed Swiss chard.
Again, most of these meals aren't super new to me. It's more about reincorporating foods I haven't had in a while or reimagining them with similar foods that fit the bill.
Snacks: This is where it gets super hard for me. I'm such a snacker, especially a sweet snacker, so it's been really challenging to find something satisfying.
I've been gravitating towards Granny Smith apples (thankfully those are green-lit) with some freshly ground nut butter with no sweetener added. Thankfully that snack has been cutting it for me.
I've also been having Simple Mills almond crackers and basically living on those when I want something remotely conventional, especially considering I can't have bread-y carbs. Do they have sunflower oil in them? Yes. Do I care right this moment? No. I don't.
Actually, as I'm writing this I just realized they have cassava flour in them, which is a starch. So this is definitely not something you want to have in the beginning of your anti-candida journey. However, at this current time I’m actually in week four of my journey. I’ve had these crackers for the last few days and I haven’t noticed my eczema get worse, so I’m thinking having a few here and there is ok.
The Reality Check
That's essentially what I've been eating for the last four weeks.
It's been challenging and boring in some ways because I absolutely want a slice of the bread my dad makes with freshly milled flour. I'm also dreaming about cinnamon rolls and cupcakes. Yes, I'm aware I'm a nutritional therapist, but I'm also a human who loves a sweet treat as much as the next girl. And frankly, I'm picturing all of these homemade anyway.
But I'm also blasted bored of quinoa and cauliflower rice.
It's also been hard at social gatherings. Having to say "yes, I'll be there, but I'm eating beforehand or bringing my own meal." And then you watch them eat their delicious meals and desserts. I kid you not, on week one I went to my friend's birthday party, and while everyone was having cake I snuck my friend's slice for a second, gave it a good whiff, and gave it right back to her.
This is where we're at. No, it's not fun. But again, this is only temporary. And thankfully the Holy Spirit has been cutting through and giving me lots of self-control.
I could spend the rest of my life, and hundreds to even thousands of dollars per year, on prescription creams or steroids forever. Or I can stay miserable for the next couple of months, get this overgrowth out of here, repair my leaky gut, and watch my skin fully heal permanently.
I mean, I've dealt with this for three years already. What's three months?
In addition, I’m only four weeks in right now (November 12, 2025) and my eczema is improving! So…we’re going to be ok.
A Note on Flexibility
I will say, I was looking more into Dr. Noah Lebowitz's work with fungal overgrowth and he mentioned that he does not recommend his patients get off of all fruit entirely. He does have them stay away from fruit juice and dried fruits, but he keeps patients on regular fruit. I'd assume he prioritizes lower glycemic index fruits like berries over higher ones like watermelon.
He also doesn't always take his patients off of dairy or gluten, as long as they tolerate both well. I would assume it would have to be high-quality dairy products, likely raw milk or organic, low-pasteurized at the very least. And gluten products would have to be yeast and sugar-free, so sourdough would technically be okay.
I found these things out a little too late in the game. I was already a couple weeks in before I discovered this and thought I might as well just keep going. But it's definitely something to note.
The Bottom Line
This protocol isn't one-size-fits-all. There's flexibility depending on your symptoms, your tolerance, and what your practitioner recommends.
But for me? I'm going all in. And I'm documenting everything so you can see what works, what doesn't, and what I learn along the way.
Next up: My supplement stack and the teas I'm drinking to support this protocol.
Continue to follow my episodic series on Instagram @_nourish.with.han
***THIS INFORMATION IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS A DIAGNOSIS, MEDICAL ADVICE, OR A PRESCRIPTION***
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.