What Causes Thrush- Signs and Symptoms

W hen exploring what causes thrush it helps to understand that thrush is not limited to the mouth only. It is also occurs in other areas and is responsible for diaper rash in infants as well as vaginal yeast infection in women. Thrush can affect any person although it is most common in toddlers, children, aged adults and people with a reduced immune strength. So what causes thrush? The mouth, digestive tract and skin of most healthy people have trace amounts of Candida fungus. These are not harmful to these people until when they get out of hand. Usually they are not a cause for alarm because other microbial organisms take care of balancing them. In addition, there are certain medication, sickness and stress that are responsible for the condition. This is because they are responsible for offsetting the natural microbial balance in the mouth. Any alteration can cause serious problems. The common causes of these alterations include the use of antibiotics, corticosteroids and birth control pills. You need to discontinue any medication when you start noticing things going wrong. Illnesses that are likely to trigger oral thrush include HIV, cancer, dry mouth and pregnancy hormonal changes. You need to realize what the cause of the problem is and deal with it immediately. The risk also increases for people who smoke and those that wear ill fitting dentures. It is also possible for babies to pass this infection to their children when they are breastfeeding. You can always tell if you have been infected. The symptoms of oral thrush include creamy white substances in the mouth. Sometimes there is the presence of lesions and sores in the mouth which makes it difficult to eat especially if the food is very spicy. When not treated thrush can spread to other parts of the body such as the lungs, skin and liver. This is common in people with HIV and cancer. You need to be careful therefore to know what causes thrush. [Photo: flickr.com]