The biggest cause of bloating you haven't been told about

Bloating, digestive discomfort and abdominal pain are some of the biggest complaints I hear from my patients. Most are feeling deflated, hopeless and have accepted a life of food anxiety and wearing clothes to hide their 'six month pregnant' bloat.

The most frustrating thing is that despite their obvious symptoms all investigations to this point have come back 'normal', and have been left with the label of irritable bowel syndrome.

This is until I mention a game changing condition called small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO). Like the name suggests, SIBO is a bacterial overgrowth in your small intestine. Your small intestine is a major area for nutrient absorption, so it is part of the digestive system that doesn't like having lots of bugs (1).

What does this overgrowth mean?

Bacteria have many roles in our health and are vital for keeping us alive and healthy. One thing that they can produce is gas, as a by-product of fermenting the food we eat (looking at you garlic, legumes and apples) (3).

In SIBO we can measure methane and hydrogen, two gasses these bugs can produce, through a breath test. By capturing these gasses we can establish the presence and overgrowth of these bugs. If methane is detected, this suggests a bug called Methanobrevibacter smithii is present (4,5) and when hydrogen is seen, hydrogen producing species present (6).

It is these gasses that are being produced too much and in the wrong place that can cause your bloating, burping, farting, distention and a change in bowel movement. It's important to understand that these bacteria are naturally occurring and generally aren't an issue. It's just for those with SIBO, they have migrated up to your small intestine and are really enjoying their new home (6).

The farty-party in your small intestine may also provide the perfect place for fungus and yeast to overpopulate as well, so in addition to SIBO we also may be looking at Small Intestinal Fungal Overgrowth (SIFO) (7). Interestingly SIFO will not be seen on a breath test, so a trained practitioner in SIBO/SIFO is vital in understanding your gut.

How do you get SIBO/SIFO?

It's a complex condition with several risk factors that need to be identified for each person. Some of these include medications like proton pump inhibitors (7) and antibiotics, surgeries, various health conditions such as diabetes, chronic alcoholics and old age (8).

Two of the biggest protective mechanisms you have against SIBO is healthy strong stomach acid and a thorough cleaning motion in your intestines. Other defense mechanisms to prevent SIBO include intact valves (to keep things moving in the right direction), healthy secretions from your liver and gallbladder, and a functioning immune system within your gut (6).  It can be assumed that if you have SIBO that may need to be addressed too.

How to treat SIBO?

It's a complex condition that I treat all the time in my Melbourne (online) clinic, and when addressed correctly, can dramatically change your health. There are lots of online forums and support pages out there offering advice, which can be a good place to start, but treatment is tricky.

Ultimately your needs are unique and training and experienced SIBO specialists are needed to guide you through. When working with me, the best way we overcome SIBO is: 

1. Carry out gut testing and confirm it’s presence
2. Treat with the appropriate herbs, probiotics and dietary supplements
3. Retest to ensure we have addressed or if we need further treatment.
4. Ensure we have understood and are addressing the drivers of SIBO to reduce risk of relapse.

If you are ready to explore SIBO, overcome the bloat and live your best life, now is the time to Bloated to Body Confident. It helps bloating, IBS and SIBO sufferers live a normal life full of freedom and confidence, without food anxiety and digestive discomfort, with the complete step-by-step system to heal your gut from the root cause. 

In Bloated to Body Confident  we cover the complete strategy for finding your root cause, comprehensive functional and diagnostic testing, personalised dietary advice, holistic support, effective treatments and sustainable solutions, empowering evidence-based information into a clear action plan.