I recommend that you always consider the x 3, especially if you are chronically unwell. The 3 day collection period is considered the gold standard by most gastroenterologists, and the scientific literature suggests that three-day collections give maximum sensitivity and specificity for parasite and candida yeast detection because the parasites don’t generally leave their hosts in the same, even intervals, and yeasts have varying growth cycles as well. One day’s sample may produce negative results, while the following day’s sample may be positive, and the day after that the stool may be absolutely loaded with bugs. As I’ve mentioned previously, the effects of this optimal collection are diminished by the unscrupulous practice of some laboratories which unfortunately blend the three samples into one and perform only one analysis.
There are only a handful of labs that do not pool samples and perform separate analyses on each sample submitted for testing. You can also just do a parasitology test and even a stand-alone candida test through the same company, and if your results have come back positive with the CDSA x 3, you may just want to repeat the candida test as a follow- up to save on costs.
Because candida albicans is present in the gastrointestinal tract, it is possible to culture (grow it) from a stool sample. Using a special culture medium and the right anaerobic conditions (reduced oxygen), candida albicans can be grown and identified this way. David Quig Ph.D, technical manager from Doctors Data Labs (Chicago, USA) said to me that if you can culture candida albicans from a stool sample, then you have a pretty bad case of a yeast infection. Other say that this is fine, just look at the numbers, and if all three samples come back as positive, then you have a real problem on your hands. You should not be able to culture a significant viable yeast population from a motion you have passed; if you can, it means you have a significant candida overgrowth in your large bowel.
Some specialist laboratories are even able to identify the different species of candida present, and such a result could be quite significant, as some strains have a tendency to be harder to eradicate (such as candida tropicalis) than candida albicans.
Regardless of the outcome, it’s worth the effort to do all three tests. The clearer you are about the extent of your infection, the easier it is to come up with a plan of attack specific to your needs.
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