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Feb 24, 2010
The Identification and Treatment of Thrush
By Cheryl Taylor, CBE Thrush is a yeast infection that can present itself in your baby’s mouth or on your nipples. When thrush is in either of these locations, you may also find the yeast deep in the breast tissue, vaginally or on your baby’s diaper area. When the yeast infection presents itself, it may be in all or one of these locations. Symptoms of thrush may include:
If you or your infant contract thrush and present yourself to your Pediatrician, you are likely to be sent home with a prescription for Nystatin. It is the most commonly used medication when dealing with thrush. There is a liquid medication for giving to the baby, and a cream that can be placed on your nipples. Other treatments used are Gentian Violet and Diflucan. My reservations with beginning with the above medications are that the Nystatin liquid contains sugar to make it palatable enough that baby will swallow it. However, yeast feeds on sugar. This may be the reason why it is often not effective. Gentian Violet is effective, but stains skin purple for several days. I have some lovely photos of my twins with purple faces! Diflucan is very effective, but can cause intestinal distress in mom and/or baby. For these reasons, I prefer to begin with Grapefruit Seed Extract as the first line of defense. I have found that the use of Grapefruit Seed Extract as recommended almost always brings rapid relief and an elimination of the yeast imbalance. Grapefruit Seed Extract is a broad-spectrum antimicrobial compound synthesized from the seeds and pulp of grapefruit. It is an extremely potent and effective broad-spectrum bactericide, fungicide, antiviral and antiparasitic compound. Tests have shown that GSE is dramatically more effective than Colloidal Silver, Iodine, Tea Tree Oil and Clorox bleach against five common microorganisms. In studies performed by Dr. John Mainarich of Bio-Research Laboratories in Redmond, WA, samples of each of the common antimicrobials or sanitizing agents were evaluated for effectiveness against Candida albicans, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella typhi, Streptococcus faecium and E. coli. The other antimicrobials tested were considerably less effective than the GSE. GSE is extremely effective in the treatment of thrush. I also find it to be the easiest place to start. If used diligently, it typically will clear up thrush within a couple of days. Treatment of thrush with GSE
If treatment with GSE seems to leave your nipple area dry, I suggest applying a light coating of Vitamin E oil in the following manner: First apply the GSE solution, allow that to dry or use a hairdryer to dry it completely, then apply a light coating of Vitamin E oil. I would suggest doing this 3 to 4 times a day until the dryness is gone. It should only take a couple of days to show significant improvement. The Vitamin E oil should absorb into the skin thoroughly prior to the nursing following the application. I’m a big fan of Lansinoh, but do not use it when dealing with thrush, because it provides a moisture barrier that is counterproductive to getting rid of thrush. Since learning of the powerful antimicrobial that Grapefruit Seed Extract is, I have always kept a bottle in my home for many uses. For more information on GSE:
For prevention of thrush while taking antibiotics: There are times over the course of nursing when a nursing mother needs to take antibiotics. While taking antibiotics, good bacteria are destroyed along with the bad. The absence of the good bacteria, which usually keep yeast in reasonable balance within the body, is what can leave a nursing dyad with thrush. There are several options that may help to avoid this imbalance:
All of these probiotics help to reintroduce to the gut the good bacteria that will help to regain control of the yeast overgrowth in the system. If the infant or child is the one taking the antibiotics, they usually fare better at avoiding thrush while taking antibiotics because breastmilk has a bifidus factor. It promotes the growth of Lactobacillus, a harmless bacterium, within the gut. Growth of this bacteria helps to eliminate the overgrowth of yeast. A toddler or child can also take acidophilus. The powder itself has a pleasant creamy taste and most are happy to lick it off your finger, take it with spoon or you can mix it into a food. 69 Responses to “The Identification and Treatment of Thrush” |
I'm not sure if i have yeast. I have ridges on the skin of my areola and it seems a little shiny, and the worst problem is the slits in the skin i keep getting at the base of the nipple where the skin meets the areola. The only pain i have of any kind is the pain from having a cut open when my son nurses. A dr proscribed nystatin which didn't work (after reading this though i realize that doesn't mean anything) and then i did a treatment of gentian violet for 3 days which also had no affect. I'm going to try the GSE after reading this but i'm just curious if you thought it might not be yeast if i have no pain whatsoever except from the cuts. There is clearly something very wrong which the skin of the breast around the nipple because it cuts as soon as he latches, healing quickly but kind of superficially when he only feeds on the other side, and then opening up again as soon as i let him latch on the side where all the cuts are. The other side is also starting to be really red and sore but the skin has never cut, even though i've had this problem for over two months now. Thanks in advance for your advice!
Thrush is a likely possibility of the continued cracking with latch, but it is also possible that it is something else like a topical bacterial infection or a staph infection in the breast tissue. It really is best, if possible, to see a local IBCLC to have an accurate assessment of what is going on. If you haven't heard of Dr. Jack Newman's All Purpose Nipple Ointment is designed to combat thrush or a bacterial infection and works well if it is a topical issue only. If you have breast pain that you can feel deeper into the breast tissue I would suggest not putting off getting good lactation help on assessing the cause. There are several things that are possibilities and a nursing mom doesn't have the time to experiment for long figuring it out without her supply being affected.
Hi,
I had thrush while breastfeeding both of my children (now 6 and 3). It was bad and painful and took 20 days of fluconozole to get rid of it. For the last few days my one breast has been incredibly sore and it feels very much like they did when I had thrush with children. Is it possible I have thrush in my breasts 3 years after breastfeeding? Thanks for your help!
It certainly wouldn't be related to anything from 3 years ago. There are so many things that can potentially cause pain in the breast that I would monitor it and if it doesn't go away would suggest discussing with your physician.
Hi-
Does GSE pass through breastmilk if I take it orally? My baby hates the taste, even when really diluted.
Thanks!
Even if a miniscule amount had the potential of being in breastmilk it would not be enough to combat thrush in baby's mouth.
My baby was just diagnosed with thrush on Friday during her 2 month checkup. The doctor prescribed nystatin which we started on Friday night, but after doing much reading on several sites, I'm skeptical about it's effectiveness.
I believe that I also have thrush in my nipples, but have not seen my physician yet. Should I bother scheduling an appointment or should I immediately begin using the GSE on my nipples and in my baby's mouth? Since her diagnosis, I've been cleaning my nipples after every feeding with distilled vinegar and water (1 TBSP per 1/2 cup of water), swabbing her mouth out with water after nursing and swabbing her mouth with the nystatin every waking hour (I don't wake her up at night or from her naps to swab her with the nystatin).
Once the symptoms subside, how much longer do we need to continue treatment? How will I know when the thrush has been fully eradicated? If When you say, "every waking hour," does that mean every hour she's awake? I don't need to wake her up from her naps to swab her, do I?
I'd like to clear this up naturally and avoid any additional prescriptions, if possible.
Thank you!
Oh, also, when you say to swab the baby's mouth prior to nursing, do you mean immediately prior (i.e. nursing would wash away the bitter taste)? Or to just make sure to swab the mouth prior to feeding with enough space in between the swabbing and nursing so that the baby doesn't associate the two together?
This is my first bout of thrush even though I nursed my first child for almost two years.
Thanks again!
Lisa
Yes, the idea is to give the baby some relief from the bitter taste with nursing afterward.
Bear in mind that you CAN get rid of thrush, but it's not always easy to accomplish. I agree with you that it's worth trying to get rid of it with natural means first, but be careful about letting it go very long without improvement.
If your nipples are already tender it's so likely that you have thrush as well that I wouldn't wait to begin treating topically or talk with your doctor regarding treatment. You do have to have a medical care professional that understands the appropriate treatment for getting rid of thrush. Being skeptical about Nystatin is inevitable when you know it's only effective 50% of the time. Vinegar is a good antifungal and can sometimes help. So does a mild baking soda solution. It may not be enough to get rid of the thrush though. I suggest continuing treatment until the thrush symptoms are gone, and then spacing out the treatment as long as symptoms are not present.
Yes, by every waking hour I mean every hour that baby is awake. Though it might be nice to have hourly treatment, an exhausted mom and baby don't help the situation any.
Thrush is not always possible to clear up with natural methods, but it's certainly worth a good try. You can also take GSE capsules yourself or some moms add the liquid to a little orange juice and drink it. It is very bitter!
Ok well I have been on nystatin cream and the infection on my nipples seemed to go away. My daughter doesn't seem to have it at all. Then around easter I got it again. My doctor prescribed triamcinolone 0.1% I was to apply it twice for 5 days then once for 5 days. Welll I did that and it just came back. I am unsure what to do. I went back to the doctor and he wants me to see a dermatologist. He thinks there is a reason I keep getting it back. He wants me to use the cream once a day until I see a dermatologist. I don't want to stop breastfeeding but I am at a loss. I am in so much pain, shooting pain before I nurse and after, that I might stop breastfeeding. I tried the gse and my nipples are so chapped that I am ready to quit that too. Why do they get so dry and does that mean it is working? Is it possible to have the infection get so bad it gets on your skin? What I am wondering is… what should I do? What should I try?
Since it continues to return my experience tells me that you never really got rid of it. It is not just a topical issue and the triamcinolone doesn’t touch the systemic issue. You may see symptoms on the surface but often times the thrush is deep within the breast tissue. I would recommend, at this point, that you consider speaking with your medical care regarding Diflucan. http://www.breastfeedingonline.com/20pdf.pdf I would be surprised if a dermatologist were well versed in what was necessary to get rid of thrush in a nursing mom.