92 answers

5 Y/o with Chronic Yeast Infections

Hi Moms,
I have a 5 y/o girl, fully potty trained day and night who gets regular yeast infections. She has always had very sensitive skin and gets them at least every other month-occassionally she even has the white discharge. She takes a bath just about every day, wipes well, we use only sensitive skin laundry detergent, and only wears cotton panties. We treat them each time topically with Monostat (7-day cream) and they go away for a month or two then they are back. Any suggestions? Has anyone else gone through this? Is this normal? My
Thanks, A.

2 moms found this helpful

What can I do next?

So What Happened?™

Just an update: We went to Whole Foods and they have probiotic capsules. We give her one in the evening and she has not has an infection since then! Thank you again for all your help!

Wow...I never expected such an outpouring of advice! I cannot thank you enough!

Just a quick update...I have spoken with her doctor. He suggested that first we quit baths and go to showers. We will start this tonight. He also suggested that she could be reacting to the "baby" soap we are still using, so we will switch to Dove. Finally, he asked the next time she has a flare-up to bring her in. I never thought it could be something other than a yeast infection, so we will have him look at it the next time it flares up.

I will definately look into the probiotics. It is simply impossible to get her to eat yogurt every day. She burns out and it would become a battle, but if I can add something to what she is eating, it will be much better. Her diet is very healthy...little refined sugar, but she does eat lots of pasta, loves bread and fruit. I would like to try other alternatives before I cut out her favorite foods.

We also have started taking her panties off at night to let her "air." She loves this, so hopefully that will also help.

I'll repost here in a few weeks to let everyone know how it is working out. I can't thank you all again!

Best regards, A.

Featured Answers

My 8 year has gotten them from birth until a few years back. We now have her eat yogart and if she starts complaining of any problems we add baking soda to her bath water. This has really helped her. Good luck.

2 moms found this helpful

Hi A.:
Have you looked at her bubble bath? Sometimes girls, even women are sensitive to that. Will she take showers?

1 mom found this helpful

My mom told me that bubble bath could possibly be the cause of this, as my niece was having the same problem, when she used bubble bath in the tub.

1 mom found this helpful

More Answers

Hello A.,

This type of yeast infection is not vaginal in origin, it is intestinal, but will manifest vaginally because it lives in the colon, which is parallel to the vagina and the fungus migrates through the internal membranes, as well as migrating due to the close proximity of the anus to the vagina. The actual fungus is called Candida Albicans (do some internet research) and can be very difficult to get rid of. It is brought on by food allergys. It is painful, makes you feel like you have the flu and will eventually break out on the skin surface in an extremely painful rash if not stopped. You need to take your daughter to either Dr. Suzanne Mack or Dr. Linda Yeatts in Denton, because they are the only two doctors in the area that are familiar with Candida Albicans and how to effectively treat it. The first thing to do is change her diet: remove all sugars (and all derivitives thereof - a good substitute is Xylitol, do not use artificial sweetners); fruit & fruit juice (too much natural sugar); cow dairy (goat dairy is ok); all grains; and anything that contains yeast. The Candida Albicans fungus lives on sugars, all types, and cow dairy, and of course carbohydrates (grains) because your body converts them to sugar once consummed. I have had this fungus for many years and searched doctors until I was almost broke, and felt like I would have to improve to die, before finding Dr. Mack, who I must credit with saving my life. This fungus is very dangerous and aggressive and you must address it immediately.

If you would like to speak to me direct, I would be happy to visit via email or phone.

3 moms found this helpful

A.,

Have you tried probiotics. You can get them at Whole Foods in the Vitamin Section. There are even new probiotics made specially for kids that come in the form of milkshakes. Probiotics have been all over the news lately. Maybe you've heard about them. Basically they help minimize the overproduction of yeast in your body. I'm not sure if you watch OPRAH, but Doctor Oz swears by them, and so do I.

S.

2 moms found this helpful

Give probiotics every day and cut out all sugar and white flour products. Yeast trives on sugar. I am diabetic and have a tendency to get yeast infections if I don't keep my sugar under control. Also if she has been given antibiotics that will cause yeast infections also due to they destroy the good bacteria in the system.

2 moms found this helpful

My 8 year has gotten them from birth until a few years back. We now have her eat yogart and if she starts complaining of any problems we add baking soda to her bath water. This has really helped her. Good luck.

2 moms found this helpful

I am curious as to does she take bubble baths? They say it is not good to sit in the bubbles that it can cause yeast infections.
Also someone had mentioned cranberry juice, it does work for bladder infections , but not yeast.
Yogurt is a very good form of the good bacteria and she should eat yogurt everyday it really helps or you can try a supplement called acidophilus .
Also you can cut back her yeast consumption such as breads and sweets and stuff like that.

2 moms found this helpful

My daughter had the same problem at age 3. But Monistat is not the right medicine. There is a gel in the pharmacies that is homeopatic, that clears it up without all the harshness. Organic yoghurt (ingested), lots of fruits with Vitamin C, lots of unsweetened fluids (plain water) or fluids with electrolites (Pedialite) if she is very active.
Hope she gets better.

1 mom found this helpful

I think everyone has some good suggestions. If the situation is chronic I would take her to the ped so that they can rule out sometime else causing the problem and so that the two of you can work on a plan of action and follow up if the situation does not improve. You might just be treating the symptoms and not the true problem.

1 mom found this helpful

I used to have a similar issue and have had a lot of luck with making a couple changes that might help you. I have done some Yeast cleanses that you can buy online. Tri-Lac is a good one, but you may have to do some research to adjust this type of thing for children. Basically, it's a pre-measured powder that you put on your tongue and swallow followed by a glass of water. It has a pleasant lemon taste. Also, eliminate/drastically reduce sugar as sugar feeds yeast. Cut from her diet all yeast, gluten, wheat, dairy and sugar. The yeast cleanse will make a HUGE difference. I haven't had an infection in over a year. And I'm not as good about the dietary changes that I recommended.
Good luck!
T.

1 mom found this helpful

Required Fields

Our records show that we already have a Mamapedia or Mamasource account created for you under the email address you entered.

Please enter your Mamapedia or Mamasource password to continue signing in.

Required Fields

, you’re almost done...

Since this is the first time you are logging in to Mamapedia with Facebook Connect, please provide the following information so you can participate in the Mamapedia community.

As a member, you’ll receive optional email newsletters and community updates sent to you from Mamapedia, and your email address will never be shared with third parties.

By clicking "Continue to Mamapedia", I agree to the Mamapedia Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.