A stool test is a critical part of a comprehensive gut evaluation. However, not all stool tests are created equal. And unfortunately, your doctor may not know that. Many health practitioners understand that treating the gut is important for many health conditions, but most of them don’t know the best way to evaluate the gut. This article reviews the basics of stool testing so you don’t waste your money on the wrong test.

In up to 2/3 of patients diagnosed with IBS, SIBO is actually causing their bloating, abdominal pain, and abnormal bowel movements. While we have been researching SIBO for the last few decades, it has not been until recently that researchers have been able to clearly elucidate the microbiome of the SIBO patient. This may pave the way for new therapeutics and a personalized approach for SIBO.

While SIBO can cause many symptoms and may lead to other health conditions, SIBO did not just randomly happen. The bacteria grew in your small intestine for a reason and for successful treatment, you need to address the cause. Otherwise, SIBO will recur.

Bloating is the sensation of pressure in the abdomen WITHOUT a change in girth. A change is girth (often described as a pregnant belly look by patients) is abdominal distention. You can have bloating with abdominal distention but you may just have bloating. With abdominal distention, there is usually pain, which we call visceral hypersensitivity

Butyrate is a really important fatty acid, not just for our gut, but also our entire body. Butyrate is made by bacteria in our gut when they ferment starches.

Maybe you have heard that your gut health may be contributing to autoimmune disease. Maybe you have even heard that your gut bacteria influence your immune system. But how? To answer that, we have to talk about endotoxin and alkaline phosphatase.

If you have been diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), chances are that you actually have small intestine bacterial overgrowth (SIBO). Normally, you have small amounts of bacteria present in your small intestine. In SIBO, the bacteria proliferate in your small intestine where they ferment sugars from your food leading to digestive symptoms.

If you have been diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), there are a few things you need to know. First of all, IBS isn’t real. This leads to my second point: you don’t have IBS (because you can’t have something that isn’t real).