Hi, Lori:
Sorry to take so long to respond--things are pretty slow for me while recuperating.
Yes, AS is certainly exacerbated by the yeast overgrowth, and whenever this has been the case diet did not seem to work as rapidly and sometimes not at all.
You know the downside of treating with diflucan, but it is a very good drug as far as it can affect intestinal involvement. Problem is the C. albicans is systemic and will come back. The fasting may not be the best way, either, but treatments using caprylic acid, colloidal silver, garlic, and probiotics have been very effective and you might consider doing major alternating cycles of probiotics/anti-candida---antibiotic therapy.
The Cipro is great against Kp, but will rapidly produce resistive strains if starch is not totally eliminated.
ALSO: The contribution to AS from smoking is considerable. I should post a smoking rant in the near future, but cut this out since you will reduce levels of healing vitC to zero and healing niacin to zero--just for starters; we cannot heal properly without intestinal blood flow. Smoking is certainly contributory to Crohn's Disease. Ok--and the smoke contains bad levels of cadmium, a known arthritogen. It does not mean that you will not heal; it will just take very much longer...life is too short!
Health to You,
John
"Ah but if somehow you could pack up your sorrows, and give them all to me--
You would lose them, but I know how to use them; give them all to me""
Pack Up Your Sorrows Richard Fariña and Pauline Marden
