SIBO: How to Kick Out Unwanted Bacteria in Your Gut

Receiving or hearing the diagnosis of small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) can leave you with more questions than answers.

The understanding of this disease is not quite perfected yet.

There’s continuous research happening, as we speak, about the root cause of why these sneaky little bacteria think your small intestines is the cool place to hang out in your body – where they don’t belong.

Why is there excess bacteria in your gut and why aren’t the medications on the market helping to get rid of them?

These are questions that both doctors and patients are asking about SIBO.

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) symptoms such as bloating, abdominal pain, constipation, and diarrhea tend to overlap with SIBO symptoms.

And, this is just another curveball that comes with SIBO, because the diagnostic tests aren’t definitive in diagnosing SIBO or IBS.

This sounds like a huge merry-go-round that everyone wants to get off of!

And you can – if you cut out the root cause of this bacterial overgrowth.

How Do You Test for SIBO

As we said earlier, the diagnostic tests for SIBO aren’t very reliable. So unreliable that a large number of patients come back with false negatives.

Hydrogen breath tests are an indirect measure of your gut bacteria – meaning they aren’t directly testing your gut bacteria.

You’re given glucose or lactulose to ingest and doctors test the byproduct – methane and hydrogen – of these carbohydrates in your gut.

This indirect test leaves room for other influences from your intestines and diet to result in false negatives.

Although these tests are somewhat unreliable it’s the best option we have for now. Since the diagnosis of SIBO is on the rise, there are more eyes on this disease than ever before.

Which means more research being done, which will solve a lot of unanswered questions.

The SIBO and IBS Connection

When someone falls and breaks their arm they know exactly the cause of their broken arm – the fall.

Reenact the same fall with another person and they can walk away with all their bones in perfect condition – thanks to the protection of their strong bones.

This is because each person’s body is structurally different, which is why it’s so frustrating detecting the cause of SIBO.

There are numerous reasons why someone can develop SIBO, and it all depends on the person.

disruption of your gut’s natural diversity of bacteria – gut microbiome.

The following are the most common causes of SIBO:

• Low stomach acid
• Irritable bowel syndrome
• Infection
• Birth control
• Antibiotics
• Acute diverticulitis
• Slow bowel transit time
• Small intestine dysmotility
• Type II diabetes
• Prior bowel surgeries
• Improper diet (alcohol, sugar, gluten, processed foods)
• Major stress or anxiety

SIBO can go undiagnosed because doctors just assign it the label, IBS.

IBS can cause an upset in your gut microbiome, which can lead to bacteria to populate in your small intestines causing SIBO.

However, SIBO can be the cause of your IBS issues.  SIBO and IBS are so closely related that many researchers believe that they are truly one and the same, just labeled differently, but causing the same symptoms.  

When patients are treated for SIBO their IBS symptoms seem to be relieved. Studies show that 84% of IBS patients have tested positive for an overgrowth of bacteria in their small intestine.

SIBO and IBS are so closely related that many researchers believe that they are truly one and the same, just labeled differently, but causing the same symptoms.

SIBO Treatment to Kick Out Unwanted Bacteria

Take the same analogy of someone breaking their arm from falling and apply it to SIBO treatment.

Finding the right treatment – SIBO treatment depends on the person and the cause of SIBO.

The current go-to medication on the market for SIBO is an antibiotic called rifaximin (Xifaxan). It has been shown to be slightly helpful for those patients suffering from hydrogen-dominant SIBO which causes diarrhea.

This is because Xifaxan is FDA approved for IBS-D (IBS associated with diarrhea) patients which focuses on eliminating the hydrogen-producing bacteria in the gut – which is the cause of hydrogen-dominant SIBO.

But what about the patients whose unwanted guest are methane-producing bacteria causing constipation?

These patients tend to be the hardest to treat because medications focus on hydrogen-dominant bacteria leaving these methane-producing bacteria to continue to roam freely.

Atrantil’s botanical ingredients target both methane and hydrogen dominant SIBO.

Atrantil was released in early 2016 based research developed by the cattle industry. You’ve probably heard about how methane from cattle farms is a big problem for greenhouse gases.

Well, this research was developed in an effort to reduce methane emissions from these animals.

Atrantil consists of 3 natural products to help eliminate this unwanted bacteria in your small intestines – quebracho, conker tree, and peppermint.

These ingredients are tried-and-true in treating SIBO patients in relieving 80% of their uncomfortable symptoms such as abdominal discomfort and bloating, with/without constipation, diarrhea or both.

As I said before, sometimes a single treatment doesn’t work for a disease. This is why patients end up on a cocktail of treatments.

Depending on your cause of SIBO the following supplements or medications combined with Atrantil can help destroy these bacteria:

• Low-dose naltrexone or rifaximin
• Low-dose erythromycin to improve gut motility

As with all diseases, “food is thy medicine” and it’s important to feed your good gut bacteria which helps in fighting off overrun bacteria and improves the balance of your gut microbiome.

SIBO diet food list:

• Lactose-free dairy
• Veggies and more veggies rich in polyphenols
• Limit fruit to only one serving a day due to high sugar content
• Low FODMAP carbohydrates

If you’re suffering from SIBO or IBS, it’s the bacteria you want to kick out of your small intestine and get to go back where they belong– in the colon.

You don’t have to sit in silence grinning and bearing these uncomfortable symptoms anymore.

With the help of Atrantil’s simple natural ingredients you can be confident your gut microbiome will finally be balanced and your digestive system back on track.