“Why has no one explained this to me before? – that makes so much sense! ”
Is the most common response that I get when I explain the mechanisms of what is going on in the digestive system and the reasons that discomfort can happen.
Patients often feel a sense of relief that they finally understand why they are experiencing the discomfort; which often is something quite common, and YES there is lot you can do to fix this.
Small Intestinal Bacteria Overgrowth (SIBO)
SIBO often (but not always) part of the picture during chronic IBS. SIBO can develop when there is an overgrowth of certain strains of microbes in the upper gut and they produce lots of gas – leading to bloating, burping, reflux & indigestion. Depending on the type of the microbe they can also cause constipation or diarrhoea.
This can interfere with digestion and cause more gas production. These microbes usually produce methane or hydrogen gases which can lead to constipation or diarrhea, or a switching between the two. Another form is Hydrogen Sulphide SIBO which produces more of an eggy smelling gas and can be inflammatory.
Intestinal Methanogen Overgrowth (IMO)
The term Intestinal Methanogen Overgrowth (IMO) refers to an overgrowth of methane producing bugs and often causes constipation, slower movement of the gut and discomfort caused by bloating and trapped wind. It can happen in both the small intestine and the large intestine, or both.
These are now known to be some of the main underlying imbalances in Irritable Bowel Syndrome. However the picture is usually more complex and usually also involve changes in stomach acid, digestive enzyme production, bile flow from the gall bladder as well as other factors listed below.
My 3 month Digestion Restore Plan is designed to help you over a 3 month period to understand what changes will be most effective and set you on a path to resolution.
During your initial 1 hour consultation, I will take a careful in-depth history of your digestive issues and explain to you likely physiological mechanisms of why the discomfort is there before giving some recommendations around a few dietary changes and some targeted supplements that may help.
Nutrition is not a magic pill and it can take a year or more for sufficient changes in the microbiome and digestive function to happen and to see good results But understanding what the issue is can sometimes be all that it takes to substantially improve. The quickest recovery I have seen is just 2 days into the plan.
