Bacteria is always in our lives, we need bacteria in order to survive, the vast majority of bacteria is beneficial to us. They estimate that if you count all the bacteria cells both on and in our bodies you would find that bacteria cells would outnumber our own cells. But bacteria isn't alone, we also have to live with yeast cells as well. Yeast is all around us every day and some strains of yeast, just like bacteria, live quite happily both on and in our bodies.

Yeast thrives in warm and moist places and, if left unchecked, would simply continue to grow. Fortunately for us some of the friendly bacteria that hitches a ride with us is very good at keeping this yeast under control.

A yeast infection occurs when this bacteria becomes depleted. This allows the yeast to grow uncontrolled and it then becomes a problem.

Yeast infections are very common and affect around 70% of us. There is no discrimination with yeast, female, male, old and young, we are all susceptible and equally capable of acquiring this disease. Strictly speaking, a yeast infection is neither a disease nor an infection. It is simply an overgrowth of naturally occuring yeast, but because of it's invasive nature once it takes a hold and because of it's ability to spread from one person to another, it is generally known as an infection.

Candida Albicans, the most common form of yeast infection, is also known as Candidiasis, thrush, or fungal infection and they are responsible for infections that range from superficial, such as oral thrush and vaginitis to systemic, and potentially life-threatening, which are also referred to as candidemia and are normally associated with people who have a severely compromised immune system, such as sufferers of cancer and AIDS. See yeast infections explained.

A common cause of yeast overgrowths is the use of antibiotics which, because antibiotics are not very good at selecting specific bacteria to attack, kills off the bacteria that would normally keep the yeast under control as well as the bad bacteria. Diabetes is also linked with an increased incidence of yeast infections.

Then of course, there is the contagious side of yeast infections which is yet another common way of getting one, open wounds are particularly vulnerable to Candida overgrowths, but perhaps the most common way of contracting a yeast infection is during sexual intercource.

There are remedies from all drugstores that do not require prescriptions, or your doctor may prescribe topical or oral medication for you. One of the biggest problems of these methods of treating yeast infections, is that they bypass medical diagnosis which can be dangerous because the symptoms can easily be confused with more dangerous diseases, and there is also the added problem that the yeast can build up immunity and become tolerant of the drugs.

Even though these medicines do a reasonably good job of reducing the amount of yeast that is in our body, whenever they destroy the yeast, they leave behind some that are more resilient. Then, when the yeast infection recurs, because we did not bring our bacteria back into balance, it can end up more severe than the first time.

It is then possible that we end up fighting yeast infections regularly, and then the chance of the yeast infection becoming systemic is more pronounced.

Penile and vaginal yeast infections are the most common among men and women respectively, and, normally, are easily treated, but sometimes a husband and wife can pass the yeast infection back and forth between them. Simultaneous treatment for both partners is often a good idea.

If you think that you or your partner has a yeast infection, it is important to seek treatment and not just hope that it will go away of it's own accord.