Bacteria Overgrowth

[Lizking531]

I went through all the testing and such (blood, stool, upper & lower scopes) for the doc to tell me that I have a bacteria overgrowth -

Prescribed the antibiotic Xifaxan for about 45 days now - at first my symptoms ( big D, soft stools, fatigue, etc) cleared up quick, but lately (as I am getting close to running out of anitbiotic) they have been coming back, slowly but surely. I've been taking probiotics & trying to stay away from beer (my culprit for bad stomach days). I went gluten free for a while, then my doctor talked me out of it since my biopsy was negative. (Eating gluten at the time of my tests - went gluten free after that, then once all my results were back, about 2 months later, started on gluten again) I've also read a lot about once you get an overgrowth, you're pretty much predisposed to having overgrowths again for the rest of your life.

Are there any special dietary changes to deal with bacteria? What can I do other than go to the doctor again?

[ravenwoodglass]

"I went gluten free for a while, then my doctor talked me out of it since my biopsy was negative. (Eating gluten at the time of my tests - went gluten free after that, then once all my results were back, about 2 months later, started on gluten again) "

Did you get any relief from the diet? What happened when you added it back in? Any reaction even if not until a few days later? Not all biopsies and blood work are accurate and false negative abound. Your reaction to the diet is a better indication of whether it will help you.

As for balancing the good and bad bacteria with diet changes I used 2 foods. Yogurt, gluten-free with live cultures. Yoplait and Wegmans are my favorites. I also made sure to eat quite a bit of sauerkraut (fermented cabbage). Since I have had to drop casien the cabbage is now my only option. I sure others will be on with their favs.

[jmd3]

I went through all the testing and such (blood, stool, upper & lower scopes) for the doc to tell me that I have a bacteria overgrowth -

Prescribed the antibiotic Xifaxan for about 45 days now - at first my symptoms ( big D, soft stools, fatigue, etc) cleared up quick, but lately (as I am getting close to running out of anitbiotic) they have been coming back, slowly but surely. I've been taking probiotics & trying to stay away from beer (my culprit for bad stomach days). I went gluten free for a while, then my doctor talked me out of it since my biopsy was negative. (Eating gluten at the time of my tests - went gluten free after that, then once all my results were back, about 2 months later, started on gluten again) I've also read a lot about once you get an overgrowth, you're pretty much predisposed to having overgrowths again for the rest of your life.

Are there any special dietary changes to deal with bacteria? What can I do other than go to the doctor again?

You can have Jennies coconut macaroons - High in capric acid + lauric acid - good acid for you. Source of MCT's for energy, sulfite free, wheat free, lactose free, gluten free, and soy free.... I don't think the bad bacteria like either of those acids listed above

A good probiotic - I started with FloraJen3 pills, I put 1/4 tsp. FOS powder in a glass of water - then tried a couple of other brands.... now I am back to the FloraJen 3 w/ the FOS powder - This is like eating 10 yogurts a day, since I have a hard time with dairy this works for me. (I swear by this!)

[CarlaB]

I'm on my way out, so a short post ... this is something I suffer from. Google the following herbs, they've helped me.

Plant tannins (www.intensivenutrition.com)

Uva Ursi

Oregano Oil

Coconut oil (use instead of butter)

Theralac

Ultra Flora

VSL#3

The last three are probiotics, I take all three. The VSL#3 is making the biggest difference of anything I've done.

Also Google bacterial dysbiosis and you'll learn a lot.

[Lizking531]

When I went gluten-free, I felt a lot better. Once I had been doing it a few days, a lot of my internal discomfort subsided - I just figured it was because it was an easier diet to digest. Then I got an anitbiotics & that made me feel better again. So I went off the gluten free.

It hasn't been anything that just hit me or stands out, but slowly but surely my symptoms are returning - 6-10 BM's per day, stool is getting softer & more orange in color, fatigue, irritability, headaches, etc.

My antibiotic runs out tomorrow. I'm thinking that all roads arepointing to an intolreance or allergy of some sort - especially since my symptoms are back and i ahven't even finished my meds yet.

[JodiC]

Try taking acidophilis, bifidus, and lactobillis. Available at Wal-mart or any health food store. I know you tested negative for celiac so you should be using your time to find out what is really going on. Many diseases and symptoms can look like celiac. You really need to look at the whole picture.

[CarlaB]

I have to tell you about a product I found that gets rid of all kinds of parasites, including the bad bacteria. It really works!!! I actually had a large tapeworm I had no idea was there (ick!).

Just in the past few days I've gotten color back in my face, so it's been helping with a lot.

www.humaworm.com.

If there are any ingredients you are sensitive to, they will leave them out as they make each batch individually.

My son saw some interesting things, too.

I would still take a good probiotic.

[Fiddle-Faddle]

When I went gluten-free, I felt a lot better.

Your body is telling you something here. Actually, your body is screaming at you--listen to it!!!!!

Your instincts are probably correct--I bet you have a problem with gluten. I think your doctor is also not to be trusted. There ARE some good ones out there, though--I think there might be a list on this site or on some of the other celiac sites, of good (celiac-savvy) doctors, by location.

Whether it is gluten intolerance, celiac disease, or very-early-stage-celiac-disease, I don't know, but personally, I don't put much faith in biopsies. If they take six 1/4"-1/2" samples out of 22 feet of intestine, and if villi damage is patchy and only visible under a microscope, than the chance of the doctor biopsying an affected area is pathetically small.

If you get diarrhea from gluten and continue to eat gluten, things are not likely to get better. THey are likely to get worse. Why wait for them to get worse? That's like knowing that you are allergice to peanuts, but continuing to eat peanut butter sandwiches, and waiting until you actually have an anaphylactic reaction to say, "gee, maybe I shouldn't eat peanuts?"

YOU DO NOT NEED A DOCTOR'S PERMISSION TO STOP EATING GLUTEN.

But the doctor will make a lot more money off of you if you keep eating it. You will keep coming back with various symptoms (diarrhea, joint pain, tiredness, sleep problems, brain fog, etc), and he will keep writing prescriptions to mask the symptoms (but they won't address the CAUSE of the symptoms), and the doctor and the pharmaceutical industry will be very, very happy.

[BRUMI1968]

Sugar feeds bacteria. So:

zero sugar

no sugary fruits (really none is best, but apple, kiwi, grapefruit, cranberry okay)

no simple carbs (pasta, potato, bread, etc.)

If you do this for a spell (a month?), you should get some relief. I've been doing this, and every time I add a date to something, I get slightly bloated and have the pooping issues. Coconut oil is helpful as well.

I'd also go gluten-free if I were you. It sounds like the diet made you feel better. Apparently the internal diagnostics for Celiac are iffy - did you have the blood test as well?

[BRUMI1968]

I have to tell you about a product I found that gets rid of all kinds of parasites, including the bad bacteria. It really works!!! I actually had a large tapeworm I had no idea was there (ick!).

Just in the past few days I've gotten color back in my face, so it's been helping with a lot.

www.humaworm.com.

If there are any ingredients you are sensitive to, they will leave them out as they make each batch individually.

My son saw some interesting things, too.

I would still take a good probiotic.

Carla - did you have side effects from this? I'm tempted to take the children's variety to avoid overstimulating my delicate system. Plus, I only weigh 120#. On the other hand, I'd really want it to work. I'm very sensitive to nausea.

[CarlaB]

I only weigh 125 pounds myself and had no side-effects, but I don't have a delicate system.

I would look over the ingredient list and see if there's anything you are sensitive to, they will leave it out.

I had a little nausea in the beginning .... but that was only for a few hours after seeing the tapeworm! I think it was mental!

You take 2 pills twice daily, so you could always ramp up the dosage ... start with one pill one time per day, then one twice daily, etc., so that you can see how you react.

I'm also sugar-free, but I do eat fruit .... mostly berries, but also peaches and mangoes.

[sallyterpsichore]

I went through all the testing and such (blood, stool, upper & lower scopes) for the doc to tell me that I have a bacteria overgrowth -

Prescribed the antibiotic Xifaxan for about 45 days now - at first my symptoms ( big D, soft stools, fatigue, etc) cleared up quick, but lately (as I am getting close to running out of anitbiotic) they have been coming back, slowly but surely.

Have you talked to your doctor about switching to a different antibiotic? I thought our systems build up an immunity after a while and then they stop working...

[Rpm999]

can BO cause neuro problems? i've been having strange bowel movements, at times they're green, at times mucusy, my bowels are always strange....sometimes there's even little pollup/snot looking pieces seperate from the bowels, sometimes some just strange weird things come out....could this cause any of that?

[CarlaB]

Here's a list of symptoms. Open Original Shared Link Neuro problems are not on the list.

However, what you're describing sounds like it could be a parasite problem. I know mucus in the stool can be caused by parasites. I used Humaworm (www.humaworm.com) and had good results.

[Rpm999]

yeah i've been needing a bowel test for a while i swear everyday they change

[confusedks]

This is interesting to me. I was dx'd with SBBO and my GI Dr only gave me 10 days of antibiotics...not 45! That's a pretty big difference. I thought once it was killed off, there would be no reason to keep taking the abx? Does anyone know?

[CarlaB]

Kassandra, it's my understanding that it can take a while to reestablish balance in your intestines. I was on Cipro for 21 days for it, then switched over to herbs and probiotics. I seem to be better, but still have problems if I miss my probiotics.

[confusedks]

So maybe she didn't give me a long enough course of abx Carla? I wouldn't be surprised...she was an idiot!

[CarlaB]

I think you were lucky! That's not an abx that would work on your Lyme. My 21 days wasn't enough. If your stomach is still bad, you could try some oregano oil ... it can cause a Lyme herx though as it's strong stuff! Good probiotics will help, too.

[amande01]

I just wanted to put up a warning about antibiotics. They kill off the good and bad bacteria in the digestive tract. They can also cause sudden weight gain. I had over 3 times the normal bacteria in my digestive tract, and a 1 week antibiotic actually caused 4 months of steady weight gain. I gained 20 pounds in 4 months. The weight gain started the week I stopped taking the meds (I weigh myself daily so I could pin point the weight problem). They will keep trying to make you take the antibiotics but I suggest checking out the candida diet that others have recommended that I try. I'm currently looking into it and it seems logical and helpful. Just be careful with the use of antibiotics. I think that consuming organic yogurts are the best way to help control the overgrowth by promoting good bacteria. Good luck.

[sallyterpsichore]

I just wanted to put up a warning about antibiotics. They kill off the good and bad bacteria in the digestive tract. They can also cause sudden weight gain. I had over 3 times the normal bacteria in my digestive tract, and a 1 week antibiotic actually caused 4 months of steady weight gain. I gained 20 pounds in 4 months. The weight gain started the week I stopped taking the meds (I weigh myself daily so I could pin point the weight problem). They will keep trying to make you take the antibiotics but I suggest checking out the candida diet that others have recommended that I try. I'm currently looking into it and it seems logical and helpful. Just be careful with the use of antibiotics. I think that consuming organic yogurts are the best way to help control the overgrowth by promoting good bacteria. Good luck.

I know this is an old post, but I was just prescribed Xifaxan by my doc and am taking loads of it (1200mg/day). I asked about probiotics to avoid any unpleasant infections after the antibiotics and he suggested I get my pharmacy to order a probiotic called "Align." I also have an affection (addiction?) to Stonyfield Farm's yogurt, so that's a nice additional supplement.

[purple]

Check out garlic on the web. It's antibiotic, antibacterial,antifungal, (antisocial-ha ha),been around for centuries and its natural. Its one of the healthiest things you can take if you are not allergic to it. Kyolic is a good brand for a supplement. www.swansonvitamins.com sells it for about $12. Fresh: follow the web's directions on taking garlic or crush a clove or 2 small enough and swallow with water. If you smell like garlic then take less. It also repels mosquitos naturally. Nature's Way has good probiotics.