The Candida Cure: The 90-Day Program to Balance Your Gut, Beat Candida, and Restore Vibrant Health

by Ann Boroch

Foreword by David Perlmutter, MD, author of Grain Brain

The cult-classic health book, now revised and updated with a quick start cleanse, easy recipes, and more.

It’s not news that Americans are sicker than ever. Seventy million of us suffer from digestive problems like acid reflux, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), or gastro esophageal reflex disorder (GERD). Another forty million have been diagnosed with anxiety and/or depression and a staggering fifty million Americans live with an autoimmune disease. But what is newsworthy is that all of these conditions share a common thread you’ve probably never heard of: candida.

"Candida" is the term for a group of yeast organisms that have lived in our digestive tract for millennia, in harmony with the other thousands of bacteria, viruses, and archaea that make up our microbiome. But due to poor diets, processed foods, overuse of antibiotics, environmental toxins, and increased stress, our microbiome has been under steady and constant attack for decades. Yeast are of a heartier stock than bacterial microbes, and as bacteria die off, yeast begins to overgrow in the digestive tract, a condition known as candidiasis. Mild and moderate cases of candidiasis present with fatigue, IBS, eczema, depression, brain fog, migraines, and weight gain. Severe cases allow the afflicted to develop autoimmune disease (such as Multiple Sclerosis), cancer, and Alzheimer’s.

Ann Boroch’s self-published book, The Candida Cure, has been the #1 resource in candida treatment since 2008. Her program—which she used to heal herself from a life-threatening autoimmune disorder—has stood the test of time, and has become a life-changing resource for more than 65,000 people. Now, in this revised edition,  readers have even more tools, with updated information and case histories, a quick start cleanse, and all-new recipes and eating plans.

Genres: Health, Nonfiction, Food, Self Help, Cookbooks, Science, Audiobook

304 pages, Hardcover

Published February 6, 2018

About the author

Certified Nutritional Consultant, Naturopath, educator, author, and inspirational speaker. Ann has appeared on national radio and television. She was featured on the Montel Williams show April, 2008 promoting her first book, Healing Multiple Sclerosis. Ann has been in private practice for 11 years in Los Angeles, California and has helped thousands of clients achieve optimum health. She specializes in allergies, autoimmune diseases, gastrointestinal and endocrine disorders, and is an expert on Candida.

Reviews

[Nicola · Rating 4 out of 5]

Positives: An easy and approachable read; well laid out; logical progression of subject matter. Sensible medical warnings (like don't drink Red Clover Tea if you have grass allergies or suffer from other listed complaints). It gels in well with university courses about the gut micro-biome.

Neutral: There are plenty of medical references in the book and it seems well researched. On the other hand, the References section does contain a lot of websites and online journal articles rather than being heavily orientated to medical / university published texts.

The author is a naturopath and nutritionist rather than an M.D. (and the book is not co-authored / edited by an M.D.).

Positives: Contains suggested 90 Day detox plan and plenty of recipes (Bone Broth would have been a good addition as easy to digest for those with IBS and FODMAP complications). Contains suggestions for natural anti-fungal supplements or what to look for in other brands.

Negatives: Doesn't really incorporate probiotics. It would have been good to include a chapter on the importance of probiotics and which strains (and in what quantities) would be most beneficial for restoring gut health while doing the detox.

[Ashley Alexandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5 stars

Read this after I found out I had a very high overgrowth of candida from my doctor. This was a good resource to help me understand more about the condition, the diet and lifestyle.

I feel there could be some conflicting information in this book around the foods to eat during which stages of candida BUT it does include a good outline of what Candida is and can inform you on the basics if you are not aware of what candida is once diagnosed .

I also got a few good recipes out of the read so thats a plus!

[Lucinda Grant · Rating 3 out of 5]

A dense listen but a good resource with lots of specific suggestions. tbd whether I follow any of them.

[Emily · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don’t give many one-star reviews, so I thought this one deserves an explanation. I’ve read many books on health and nutrition; The Candida Cure didn’t offer anything new to me. I found some of the information lacking - a more detailed explanation for WHY some foods are ok and not others would have been helpful. (Almonds, not cashews, for example; or why beans but not peas? Never mushrooms??) While some of the guidelines seemed arbitrary, other suggestions were conflicting (if you’re losing too much weight, use a whey protein powder - but dairy is a no-no?). The recommended supplements and usage charts made my head spin. And I was very surprised that probiotics were only briefly mentioned toward the end. Having personally been through a candida cleanse that was not nearly this complicated, I suggest skipping this book and working with a doctor specializing in functional medicine.

[Jaime · Rating 4 out of 5]

So informative but incredibly overwhelming. Not enough options for vegetarians/pescatarians. Seems impossible for vegetarians. Also too much emphasis on losing weight and only “looking great” if you are thin.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent information just a little repetitive. I hate these types of books that are 50% recipes. That’s for cookbooks just give me the information. Other than that awesome information on improving the diet!!

[Martha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book changed my life. The diet and supplement program is helping me put my Fibromyalgia and related issues into remission. Improving my gut health has helped ease all my skin conditions, reduced my pain, helped me lose 120 pounds, and lifted my clinical depression. I wouldn't have believed it unless I'd lived it. That said, it is a strict protocol that requires commitment. Unfortunately, the supplement section is outdated and some of what she recommends have been reformulated and have off-protocol ingredients now (sugar or soy for example). All of it can be overwhelming but using the slow start protocol is what I would recommend. Also, reaching out for support to others following the protocol helped me. If anyone reads this and wants the additional free support I had, please feel free to message me. I can never repay Ms. Boroch for the gift of health she has given me but I can help others succeed.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I skipped a lot of the first part because it's very doom and gloom, which I don't need. I get it. Human civilization has gone too far. But in general I appreciated reading a book that lays all this stuff out for me, like about toxins, heavy metals, allergens, sugar, gluten etc. She is merciless in recommending to avoid all these things, which I've never really thought about to be honest. I am now very careful with reading labels and instinctively avoid products that seem too highly processed and containing a crazy number of ingredients.

As other reviewers have noted, there's a few inconsistencies in the book. I'm also surprised she said so little about probiotics and exercise. But I don't believe it's reasonable to think you can find everything you need to know from one person/source, and so from the start I took it with a pinch of salt. Only time will tell whether this will work for me and I'm not necessarily following her to the T, because that's not practical for me. All the supplements for instance. And I don't even know if it's possible to only have organic, free range, gluten free, pesticide free, hormone free etc. etc. in my country. Not unless you have a million bucks. I appreciate the recipes and the lists of foods, and some key tips that I have incorporated in my life. Maybe in a few months I can return to this review and give a more conclusive update on whether it's been substantively helpful. I'm optimistic.

[Marlee Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good and YUMMY recipes in here if you have a sensitive stomach! Not unlike the whole 30 or Paleo diets.

It's a shame it is all in imperial measurements, and things you gotta look up like rocket (agrula) and coriander (cilantro)

Very informative if you have IBS or issues with food in general.

[Paris Chanel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informative, detailed and straightforward. Plus it contains plenty of recipes.

[Nancy M Thatcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great information on that nasty yeast problem. Have been following the program for about a month now and it has really helped to clear up my problem.

[Lindsay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good information. But an overwhelming kind of diet included, heavy on the supplements. Definitely talk to your doctor if this is something you want to undertake.

[Leeann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very much like any other “diet/health” book: some science, a prescriptive diet that is restrictive, lots of supplements, some recipes.

[Beth Helbley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Informative but I wish she would of gone deeper, as to why we should cut certain things out or what exactly would happen.

[Killthehumans Savetheforest · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF 30%

Why is it that there are whole subjects in medicine that I can't find any books written by a scientist.

[Sarah Carey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really great book explaining the cause, how to treat and all the supplements. Highly suggest!

[Elizabeth Venzor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book, but there was a lot of anecdotal evidence and little empirical evidence. The diet is quite restrictive.

[Sam With Veggies · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish this had more info about candida itself, and went into more information on the food instead of listing what helps and what doesn’t. I want to know why.

[Colleen Douglas · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75

[Jena Schuh · Rating 4 out of 5]

very useful information about candida overgrowth and the on-going research surrounding it. Great information on supplementation, diet, and lifestyle changes to improve your health and wellbeing if struggling with this. I was definitely disappointed with the recipes though. Most of them were recipes for much later on in the protocol when you can tolerate many more foods. I would have appreciated more recipes for the beginning of the diet when you have to be very strict.

[Nicky Atanasio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book. Very informative & the info included is worth 5 stars. I gave it 4 because in the recipe section it gives recipes for maintenance of a candida reducing diet for the rest of your life, but the recipes include things that are omitted from your diet for the 90 cleanse. It has been such an effort to keep referring back to the “no” list for every recipe. If that was changed it would be a 5 Star read. Thank you to the author for all the work she put in this publication. I learned a lot and will be incorporating it into my lifestyle.

[Alisabeth Mccarthy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have struggled with a mysterious illness for the better part of a year. No doctor could tell me what was wrong. I finally found a functional medicine doctor that told me I had Candida overgrowth. I had already begun healing a little because I stumbled upon an anti-inflammatory diet which is very similar to AB’s protocol. However, when I started AB’s protocol is when I really saw healing. Her book saved my life.

[Aletha Pagett · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent and enlightening book, received from Goodreads. This was a well written explanation of the causes of candida and the author's plan to bring the body back into homeostasis. I particularly appreciated the easy and delicious recepies.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s militant, but it seems like it needs to be. I do believe that we’ve effed up our gut flora with candida, but I’m not sure I have what it takes to do the slash and burn diet in order to restore balance.

[G · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very effective diet plan. I saw results after just a couple of days. Of course, it is a strict diet and the sensation of hunger is difficult to manage at the beginning. I lost quite some weight by the end of two months. But all in all, it helped me overcome what I could not do with pills alone

[Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent. One of the only books I’ve been able to find on candida overgrowth, which I’m hoping changes. Anyone who reads this will assume they have candida overgrowth since it encompasses like every symptom lol, but if you suspect you have it it’s a good starting point to understand a little better.

[PJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good information, although is not always sourced when the more strong claims are made. Still, the remedies seem usually logical and informative.

[Kelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 There's a few good things in here, but when she started pulling out "leaky gut" I could feel my Uncle smackin' me upside my head. The amount of supplementation, for me, isn't feasible.