What is thrush? Thrush is a medical condition caused by the bacteria candida albicans - a normal flora within the human body - and it is usually found in the oral mucosa (mouth).
It accumulates in the lining of the mouth in the form of white, creamy lesions.
These lesions can also be found on the tongue and inner cheek, and if you scrape them they are likely to bleed.
Oral thrush can spread to other parts like the roof of your mouth, gums, tonsils and the back of your throat.
Oral thrush can affect anyone, but it is most common in babies, those who wear dentures, use inhaled corticosteroids and have compromised immune symptoms.
The occurrence of oral thrush is not considered a big problem if you are healthy.
However, if you have a weak immune system, it could become difficult to treat.
How do you know you have thrush? You might experience some or all of these symptoms and these include: loss of taste, a cotton-like feeling in your mouth, cracks at the corners of your mouth, slight bleeding if lesions are scraped or rubbed, pain, lesions with cottage cheese appearance, creamy white lesions on the tongue, inner cheek, roof of mouth, gums and tonsils.
Some more severe symptoms include the spreading of the lesions down to your esophagus which is the long muscular tube that stretches from the back of your mouth down your throat to your stomach.
This condition is called candida esophagitis, and when this happens, you have difficulty swallowing and it always feels as if there's something struck in your throat.
So what are some of the causes of thrush? One of the important reasons for the presence of thrush is that of an immune system that is considerably weakened.
The body is unable to produce enough bacteria or white blood cells needed to fight against the candida albicans bacteria.
There are several diseases that can cause this weakened immune system and they are listed below: HIV/AIDS: The virus that causes aids is responsible for destroying and damaging all the cells in the body needed to fight against infections.
If you keep getting oral thrush, this could be the first sign of an HIV infection.
Cancer: If you have this disease you are likely to also have a very weak immune system.
Treatments like chemotherapy and radiation - which destroys both bad and good cells in the body - increases the risk of candida albicans infections.
Diabetes Mellitus: If you are unaware that you have diabetes or you are unable to control your blood sugar levels, then your saliva contains plenty of sugar that is necessary for the candida bacteria to grow in.
Vaginal or Penile Yeast Infections: This is caused by the candida albicans as well.
This bacteria likes to live in warm, dark and moist areas, and these two locations are perfect areas for it to grow.
It's always recommended to see your doctor or get tested to make sure you do not have yeast infection.
Now that you are aware of some of the causes of thrush it's important to find a cure - and one that can be used naturally to stop the problem coming back again and again each time getting worse.