The comments below reflect the personal experiences and opinions of readers and do not represent medical advice or the views of this website. The information shared has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent any disease or health condition. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for medical concerns.
Gentian Violet
Posted by Charlotte (Woodbridge, Va) on 09/05/2013

My mother who lived between 1916 and 1999 was a young country girl from WV. Her father had died two weeks before she was born - thus she had never seen her father. This was to have given her the blessing of being able to cure thrush in babies by blowing in their mouth three times. Sounds hokey in this day and age. However, when I was a child I witnessed the many people who came with their babies who had swollen purple mouths from the gentian violet. And one woman who had 12 children had been there for every child. This was in the days before antibiotics and now you never hear of this. Just thought I would share.
Iodine
Posted by Mary (Crystal River, Florida) on 06/26/2013
★★★★★
Thrush: Low iodine in the body can cause yeast. I have hypothyroidism and didn't know that the thyroid regulates iodine in the body. I started eating dulse and kelp and used vinegar/water mix on vagina before I finally had the bloodwork done and it helped alot as the burning was untolerable, along with drinking apple cider vinegar, 2 tbls per cup of water with small pinch of baking soda and 2 tbls lemon. Also took good probiotics.
Tea Tree Oil
Posted by Louise (Toronto, Ontario, Canada) on 12/15/2012
Tea tree oil was a godsend for me in treating a bad case of oral thrush I had after taking antibiotics for strep throat. My thrush was so bad that I had a sore throat for weeks, large bumps at the back of my tongue (as well as a thick white coating) and I had even begun to have chest pain and difficulty swallowing (I can only think that the thrush must have traveled down my esophagus, as I read this can happen).
The doctor prescribed liquid Nystatin and after 10 days it had helped with the chest pain and difficulty swallowing (the instructions were to swish and then swallow the Nystatin liquid) but I still had a sore throat that was not going away. My mum came across the idea of gargling with tea tree oil so I tried 5 drops tea tree in about a 1/4 cup of water, gargled a few minutes and swished around my mouth, then spit and did not rinse my mouth. Within hours my sore throat was so much better and within a couple days of doing the gargle and swishing in my mouth twice a day, all traces of the thrush were gone! I also had to cut out all sugar while doing this as each time I ate sugar it seemed to make the symptoms start to return. I hope this will help anyone suffering as I was.
Grapefruit Seed Extract
Posted by Cheryl (Sturgeon Bay, Wi) on 08/29/2011
★★★★★
For over a month I had a white coating on tongue diagnosed as thrush. Was given 2 doses of nystatin. Didn't work. Was told to get Grapefruit seed extract as acts as antifungal. Took internally for one week. The next week I emptied the capsules and put it directly on my tongue. After 3 days the white coating was definately better. Been 6 days now & almost completely gone. Will continue for another week to take internally & put on tongue to make sure gone.. Notice I feel better now also. Not as tired & my bowel constipation has cleared up. I think this is a wonderful cure & it works!!!
Grapefruit Seed Extract
Posted by Karen (Michigan) on 02/03/2017
★★★★★
We are taking GSE to improve immune system. It sure clears up constipation quick. I once read a man comment if he could take one thing onto a deserted island, what would it be. He said Grapefruit Seed Extract. It kills bacteria, fungus, and viral and is a great disinfectant.
Baking Soda
Posted by Diamond (Salisbury, Usa) on 06/24/2011
Judy; you were very fortunate to have cured your little son of thrush. But as an older adult such as myself this thrush was not noticed as a young child and therefore was never treated, again it has progressed where it has deeply affected my whole system. Generally, if the whole body(system)is not treated it does great damage to the whole being it spreads like fire/feels like fire. While growing up I was on the wrong diet where thrush (which is the tip of the iceberg)is generally mold or fungus and got much worse
It causes many, many diseases(too many to mention).......
I agree that doctors are quacks, but the government controls these sad people, including vets. As does all clergymen, where animals/people are being used as needless and very painful experiments and, many years later have yet to prove anything of value. All I can say is: what can we expect from Corrupt America? Thankfully I am not one of the quacks but just a victim of circumstances. Thank you so much for your input it has helped me along the journey of healing through natural causes.
good luck & god bless
Gentian Violet
Posted by Laurel (Lake Forest, California) on 01/22/2009
★★★★★
Gentian Violet is AMAZING! When my son was 2 months old he came down with thrush due to some antibiotics I was taking for complications of my C-section. Our lactation consultant said to use GENTIAN VIOLET 3 times a day and in about 2-3 days the baby's Thrush should be gone. It worked. just don't plan on going out for about a week. It stains the skin for several days. Your baby's face will be purple everywhere depending on how messy of an eater they are and the size of your nipples.
Yogurt
Posted by Amar (Rochester, MI) on 01/06/2007
★★★★★
Hi, i have a remedy for vaginal thrush and am not sure if it's included coz it seems like you're talking about mouth thrush only. I had vaginal thrush about 8 years ago. I used plain yogurt for cleaning- make sure you wash off real good. I also started eating a lot of yogurt and its been gone for the past 8 years.
Yogurt
Posted by Keeza (Louisville, Kentucky) on 03/17/2009
★★★★★
When my brother was a baby he had thrush of the mouth so bad he could barely suck on a bottle.No matter what the doctor did it would not go away, A elderly lady at our church told my mother to use plain yogurt and dilute it with water until you are able to get it out of the nipple. About a week later it was gone.Yes yougurt does work really well!!!
Yogurt
Posted by Jehnavi (Lake City, Florida , Usa ) on 10/23/2010
★★★★★
You can treat thrush with natural yoghurt ... I have loads thrush when I was actually pregnant a real pain! I used natural yoghurt, which I bought Sainsburys and helps ... I would say reduce the sex until it is investigated otherwise ur partner gets it and just keep pests and vice versa!
Milk of Magnesia
Posted by Cptn. Revision (Lalaland) on 09/11/2024
Thrush is fungus. Borax kills fungus, you might dip your toothbrush in borax powder and scrub your tongue if its not to painful. Borax is cheaper than MOM.
Cloves, cardamom, nutmeg, etc in chai tea might be a nice addition to your day, too.
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Maria (A.C.T) on 11/24/2022
★★★★★
Yes years ago when I was in my forties, a doctor suggested that a daily tampon dipped in plain yoghurt would clear up my problem with yeast in the vagina and it worked. However; I'm now eighty, have been given three different broad spectrum antibiotics by my well-meaning doctor and painful swelling and itching in the vagina and anus is the result. All the good bacteria were wiped out leaving me with thrush. I douched with a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar in one cup of warm water with a half teaspoon of bi-carbonate of soda dissolved in it. Had trouble inserting the douche, so used lots of aloe vera gel from the chemist and after I'd finished I dried off, washed my hands thoroughly then massaged the whole area with virgin coconut oil then last, I inserted some into the anus. Relief rather than a cure perhaps but I was very comfortable straight away.
Oil Pulling with Coconut Oil
Posted by Crosel (Toronto, On) on 11/16/2013
★★★★★
Oil pulling (meaning swishing around in your mouth) Coconut oil before or after brushing your teeth is EXTREMELY effective against Thrush. I've never seen my tongue this normal in a long time. I was so happy I had to create an account on earthclinic and post my awesome results! GO COCONUT OIL!
Important details are as follows:
- use 1 tablespoon of coconut oil
- swish it around for 10 to 20 minutes
- spit it in your garbage or outside because it can clog your sink
Milk of Magnesia
Posted by Karen (Michigan) on 02/03/2017
You can buy a Grapefruit Seed Extract nasal spray that works wonders on sinus issues. I highly recommend you try this.
Probiotics
Posted by Azg (Toronto, On) on 09/27/2009
★★★★★
I breastfed my son until he was 16 months old and we encountered thrush twice. The second time it actually gave him a diaper rash of yeast! My naturopath gave me a special blend of Acidophilus from the refridgerated section. It's a loose powder and I would cover my nipple in it before AND after breastfeeding. Before ensured he would get a dose of it into his mouth and after to ensure he didn't give the yeast back to me, and create a vicious cycle of cross contamination. I also dusted his bum with it at diaper changes. I am not exxagarating when I tell you he was cured of all symptoms of thrush within 2 days.
To encourage both our healing, I let him stay out of a diaper for a good 20 or 30 minutes at each diaper change ( the air helps dry and heal the yeast). I also avoided all processed sugar foods for myself as to starve the yeasties living in my body.
Good luck to you! Most health food stores have naturopaths or naturopathic students on staff. Please take their advice more seriously than any doctor's!!! Don't put scary chemicals/medicines into your tiny babies!
Gentian Violet
Posted by Michelle (Tracy, CA) on 07/04/2009
★★★★★
I delt with thrush and yeast rashes with both of my babies. I found the best thing to use was gentian violet. It was the only remidy that consistantly worked. The prescriptions and OTC's never even put a dent in clearing the problem yet, with gentian violet we saw results immediatly.
Yogurt
Posted by Suzanne (London, United Kingdom) on 06/04/2009
★★★★★
I've just been reminded of a remedy for vaginal thrush that my doctor recommended many years ago (he was into alternative remedies). It worked then and it works now as I can attest, having had another bout of thrush recently. The remedy is plain LIVE yogurt. Dip a tampon into the yogurt and insert into the vagina. For outside irritation place yogurt on a pad. It is so cooling and the relief is tremendous. It really does work especially when you are feeling raw and bleeding.
Baking Soda
Posted by Ruby (Gloucester, Ma) on 11/01/2011
Baking soda is excellent. I have what may be thrush and I'm concerned because I've read that healthy adults normally do not get thrush. As far as mold going through your system. I've read that only Borax tablets (ingestible) can rid the body of mold. Also I would do an anti-parasitic and toxic cleanse for a month. I do the colonix (Dr Natura) cleanse every year on my birthday, sometimes twice a year to maintain my health. You may want to do 3 months.
Gentian Violet
Posted by Karen McSpadden (Virginia Beach, Virginia) on 11/29/2008
★★★★★
Natural Breastfeeding Thrush Remedy
In response to the issue of persistent thrush while breastfeeding, I would strongly recommend Gentian Violet. You can pick it up at most drugstores for a couple dollars and it's one of the most effective remedies in my own (frustrating and painful) personal experience with thrush. My daughter and I passed it back and forth for a while and Gentian Violet was the thing that cured it most efficiently.
You paint your nipples and the inside of the baby's mouth three times a day for three days. It's safe to use frequently. Be forewarned-- your nipples (and your baby's mouth) will be a very bright purple so plan to wear breast pads or an old t-shirt during the treatment. Also, I found that once my daughter was older-- over a year, I believe-- she wouldn't nurse from my breasts if they were purple. She didn't seem to be bothered by it when she was younger.
Whenever I have used this remedy, I have had relief from thrush and the accompanying nipple soreness.
Good luck!
Fennel
Posted by Trudy (Burton, Mi) on 05/12/2013
I would think a 'serving' is a cup of water. I also would like to say I love earthclinic. com what a great resource.
Urine
Posted by Emma (Melbourne, VIC Australia) on 01/14/2009
I know there's some stigma over using this-but quite a lot of skin creams contain urea-one of the major components of urine. I can tell you that getting a small amount of fresh urine on a cotton wool ball and applying it to styes, works a treat-your stye will be gone in a few hours-may need a couple of applications though.
Tea Tree Oil
Posted by Laurel (Lake Forest, California) on 01/22/2009
★★★★★
My lactation consultant recommended using Tea Tree Oil in the dishwasher to kill the thrush bacteria from all the bottles and other items the bacteria may have been growing. It is fully pesticide free and though the smell is quite strong I think it really helped. I even like the smell now. I always think "clean" when I smell it. We used this in conjunction with GENTIAN VIOLET and my son's thrush went away within a week.
B6
Posted by Carol (OKC, U. S. A)
★★★★★
Vitamin B6 has cured Thrush in people I have known.
Vitamin E stabilized my low BP.
Comfrey compresses healed not only the deep bruising (in 3 days), resulting from a stubbed, broken toe but also, bone -- after all, the common name for comfrey is "knit bone". Raspberry tea healed my indigestion after I was forced to eat "junk food" for 3 days whilst staying with my husband's cousin.
Cayenne pepper is awesome! My husband used it to reduce his weight. 1 tspn cayenne pepper in a 1/2 cup of hot water, 3 times a day. It speeds up the metabolism.
Milk of Magnesia
Posted by Janiek (Coraopolis USA) on 09/09/2024
Hello:
I found your page for mouth thrush and recommendations for using milk of magnesia. I tried it twice today, and it certainly seems to help!
However, I have one question. The instructions to rinse your mouth out with the milk of magnesia after you wake up, drink coffee, after you eat and before bed. What I'm wondering is this. After you rinse with the MoM, do you then rinse your mouth out with water or is that defeating the purpose?
Thank you so much!!
Milk of Magnesia
Posted by Cptn. Anon (Home Sweet Home) on 09/11/2024
It likely doesn't matter. MOM contains bleach which is probably the effective ingredient. Once the bacteria are dead there is no need for the bleach to linger. MOM is considered suitable for internal use.
If bad breath is due to eating garlic the MOM may be ineffective. You might just use less garlic to prevent the bad breath. Onion and mustard seeds are similar in health effect to garlic without the strong odor.
Oil Pulling with Coconut Oil
Posted by Tracie (California) on 01/24/2018
Thank you for your post. I've been going thru same thing for 5 months I'm like help, my gums red or raw, thanks so much docs think it's my brushing or something else I had surgery I had it in my esophagus was in diflucan 21 days it helped the burning in my esophagus but my mouth never stopped, hope this helps.
Oil Pulling with Coconut Oil
Posted by Ava (Los Angeles, California) on 12/04/2013
Taking coconut oil by spoon greatly helped my oral thrush, but oil pulling in general, especially oil pulling with coconut oil, made it infinitely worse! Be careful!
Coconut Oil
Posted by Jade (Dallas, Tx) on 09/08/2011
★★★★★
While I was nursing my baby we both got thrush. It was very painful to nurse. I started just pumping and bottle feeding. A friend of mine said thrush is a fungus and to try extra virgin coconut oil. I put it on as a topical on my affected area. And after a few minutes I would nurse. Not only did the oil add more relief than the lanolin during the actual nursing, but within days the thrush was gone. I continued to use it for my mosturizer and we never had thrush again.
Since it helped there I suggested my husband use it on his toe nails. He had 2 that I was guessing were infected with fungus. They grew so thick I would file the tops of them so they looked less gross. It took awhile because the nails had to grow out. One was completely healed and one still looks a little funky but is half the size. I think he stopped using it too early on that toe (it was worse than the other to start with).
I have also used it on diaper rashes as sometimes those are caused by fungus. It had helped several times on those.
Probiotics
Posted by Kareng (Sugarland, Texas, Usa) on 04/07/2011
★★★★★
I have not had thrush in my mouth but a friend gets it regularly. I finally persuaded her to begin an Acidopholis Therapy. Go to your local Healthfood Shop and look in the Refrigerated Section for a good Prebiotic/Probiotic/Acidopholis. Take twice the dose for about a week then follow dose on bottle, forever! You can change brands to get different strands. I use only one, but you have to get it from the company online. It is superior IMO. Caprylic Acid is also helpful. For quick relief you can find Candida drops in your Healthfood Shop. Also, White Oak Bark can be found in a Tincture or open the capsule and mix in distilled water to rinse the mouth. If you can get Raw Milk, rinsing with that will help as well. Good Luck!