3 Important Facts About Oral Thrush You Should Know
March 29th, 2012Many people have a natural aversion to reading about diseases such as thrush. Yet it’s best to be familiar with this common condition so you can defend against it. This is the type of infection that may cause symptoms you can’t immediately identify. Thrush often occurs after you’re already suffering from some immune system disorder. This condition is caused by a fungus called Candida albicans, which is present in almost everybody to some degree. To help you understand the symptoms and risks of thrush, we’ll be discussing some of its characteristics.
Most people don’t even realize that the fungus that causes thrush, Candida albicans, is always present in our bodies. There’s no doubt that it is an integral part of your body – particularly your digestive tract. If you live in the western hemisphere, there is a good likelihood that you have the Candida albicans fungus either in your mouth or one of your other oral cavities. The Candida albicans fungus is most certainly present in the mouths of those who wear dentures, but normally not in sufficient quantity to be classed as an oral thrush infection. The fungus present in someone’s mouth isn’t considered an infection until there is a major change in their mouth’s chemistry.
There are many things you can do to minimize your risk factors for having a thrush infection. Although we can’t cover all of them here, most, but not all, of the steps you can take have to do with living a healthier lifestyle. As an example, though, if you smoke cigarettes you stand a better chance of having thrush. Those who have already had a thrush infection are better candidates for a repeat infection than someone who has never had thrush.
So in that case, you should talk to your doctor and ask what you can do to decrease your risk. Don’t be tempted to treat your infection at home using anti-fungal drugs such as those that you can find at the pharmacy.
The facts about thrush as they pertain to being contagious are important to know. There are a few possible ways thrush can be spread, and this will differ based on what part of the body is affected. This type of infection is caused by the Candida albicans fungus, and therefore it is opportunistic and easily spread. Anyone who has thrush should be careful about not giving it to anyone else. But that is really not all that hard to accomplish, and the most important thing is to get proper medical treatment as fast as possible. If you have any kind of unexplained irritation, that’s a sign you might have thrush and should be checked for it.
Oral thrush is just one of several types of yeast infection – Candidiasis – that people can contract; however, most people are more familiar with the term yeast infection. Oral thrush is a very specific condition that occurs in the mouth. Yeast infection, and Candidiasis, are terms that cover in scope all types of yeast infections, not just oral thrush. However, to make the matter more interesting, if you live in the UK or are reading literature written by someone who is British, they use the term thrush the way Americans use the term yeast infection – it refers to all the different types of yeast infections. So don’t confuse the term "thrush" with the condition we’ve been discussing here, which is "oral thrush." Getting the facts about thrush will help you to identify this fungus infection if it occurs. Yeast infections spread quickly, so keep that in mind if you suspect that you may have one. If you take away nothing else from this report, burn into your mind that if you contract a yeast infection, don’t let it remain. Get it taken care of right away so it doesn’t spread throughout your body.