Signs and Symptoms of Yeast Infection in Men

Disclaimer - This post is for informative purposes only, and should not be used as a replacement for expert medical advice.

Yeast is present in the human body without it showing us any positive or negative signs. But, it is yeast infection (Candidiasis) that can be an issue. Apart from the skin, there are other areas that can be affected by the infection, such as genitals, throat, mouth, and blood.

Although small amounts of yeast is present in our bodies, the overgrowth of a type of yeast, mostly known as Candida albicans, is the culprit behind causing the infection.

A systemic yeast infection has some easy-to-identify signs and symptoms. However, depending on the area of the infection, the specific symptoms will vary.

The infection is most commonly known as cutaneous candidiasis, and occurs with the overgrowth of yeast on any skin surface on the body. However, warm, moist, and creased areas like underarms and groin are more common. In order to identify this infection, you should keep an eye whether there are any red, scaling, itchy rashes or not.

Although anyone can get the infection on their genitals, the risk is higher in men who are not circumcised. The symptoms include red rash on the penis along with itchy or burning tip of the penis. As an infection in the genitals can be easily passed on to others, you should seek medical treatment immediately.

Also called thrush, an infection in mouth or throat is generally seen in the elderly men, patients undergoing chemotherapy, men with weak immune systems or diabetes, and people with AIDS. The symptoms include white spots inside mouth and on the tongue, cracks around the corners of the mouth, redness in the mouth area, difficulty swallowing, and sore throat.

An infection that gets inside your bloodstream is seen in men with weak immune systems or with men who have the infection but never go it treated. As the symptoms are not easily noticed, the most common ones include continuous fever and chills that cannot be treated by antibiotics.

As the infection can occur on various areas of the body, the causes will also vary accordingly. Which is why, you need to be absolutely careful if you suspect that you may have the infection.

Having unprotected sex with a yeast-infected partner is another main cause of candida, and can be recognized as a sexually transmitted infection (STI). Condoms containing the spermicidal lubricant nonoxynol-9 are also known to cause the infection.

A weakened immunity system, for whatever reason, makes a person prone to the infection. If the immune system is damaged due to stress, nutrient deficiency, cancer, HIV/AIDS, any recent major illness or transplant surgery, deficiency of white blood cells, etc., the body is liable to get the infection.

Another cause is diabetes. The yeast fungi live off of sugar, and hence, diabetic patients are more prone to being infected. Also, the prolonged use of any antibiotic destroys the bad as well as the good bacteria, which in turn may lead to a such an infection.

Above all, prevention is the best way to avoid yeast infection. Eating a healthy diet, enjoying an active lifestyle, self-examination of any minor symptoms of the infection, and avoiding unprotected sex with an infected partner, all are basic things of avoiding the infection.