[Jackson1980]

Hi guys and girlsJust a query - How could gas possibly build up both in my bowels and stomach. Can my burping problem be caused by bacterial overgrowth? I feel that they have to be related ???I understand that IBSers (apparently according to the experts) do not actually produce any more gas then normal people rather it is that some of us IBSers cannot get rid of the stuff. Personally I beleive I have both excess gas and trapped gas. Sometimes it feels like a pressure valve being released (bowels). I have to repeatedly go to the toilet to try and pass the gas multiple times a day. Normally at the same time I feel if I belch out gas from my stomach I feel a little better. I also get severe stomach / bowel rumbling - it is so bad sometimes I cannot function out of embarrasment. I am sure there are others who know what I am talking about.I am intolerant to fructose (according to a breath test). The dose for the test I think was 50g and I got severe D with heightened hydrogen levels. Interstingly in the same week I had a lactulose breath test and it too gave me D but my hydrogen levels were normal. Why would one be negative and the other positive?Has anyone else got this sort of result.Going back to see a gastro in a couple of weeks ... want to investigate SIBO, but the doctor really is not up to speed - I gave him some homework to read last time I was there. He seemed rather interested so will see what he has to say soon.Wish I and other can get better soon Mark

 

[Kathleen M.]

Lactulose is about WHERE the bacteria are.You do not need to have bacteria in the wrong place (SIBO) to have IBS, and the normal colon bacteria feast on and cause symptoms from things like fructose in the fructose intolerant just fine when they are living in the colon where they are supposed to be.A lot of people think if they have symptoms from gas the must have SIBO and this is not true. The colon bacteria all in their normal places can make more than enough gas to cause problems. And the number of bacteria in the small intestine even in severe SIBO is usually much lower than the total load of bacteria in the colon, so to think they must cause all the problem by themselves when they are lower in numbers doesn't seem to make sense to me. Although they do disrupt things when they are in there so people do feel better when they get rid of them. However you do not have to have SIBO to have the symptoms you are complaining of or to have problems with fructose.All people produce a pretty large volume of gas so it takes a lot to be out of the normal range, which is why even though IBSers usually have lots of symptoms they think is due only to having more gas they generally are not out of the normal range and they just lost the tolerance for normal gas levels because of the IBS.Gas you belch is not from the colon bacteria or SIBO bacteria. That is the air you swallow and how well you cope with that.Even totally healthy people with no GI problems can have a bowel rumble loud enough to be embarrasing. Everyone's bowels make noise all the time. Sometimes and in some people it is louder than others but the only thing that is dangerous is complete silence. That only occurs with a complete blockage.

 

[YETTC]

Hi allI live in Sydney and would really like to know where I can have the breath tests performed as per Mark Pimentel's protocol.CheersChris

 

[Jillywindy]

A lot of the work on FODMAP's diets (look it up) comes from Box Hill Hospital in Melbourne. Breath testing as per the Pimentel's protocol is carried out as part of testing for FODMAP maldigestion. Since that work was published, several clinics have sprung up in other nearby cities which do breath testing. From knowing about the FODMAP work in Melbourne, I was able to locate a clinic in Christchurch which does it and they were able to direct me to a clinic in Auckland where I live which have started doing it. So I'm sure you can find someone in Sydney. I am thinking about getting it done but since I am already following a low starch diet, it seems a bit late to be getting tested now. You also have to stop taking pro-biotics for two weeks beforehand.I also wonder about the rumbling in my bowels, not because I'm embarrassed but because it is definitely different to anything I have heard before, from me or anyone else. The rumbles are longer, louder and of a much lower pitch. That doesn't worry me so much as tell me that something is different and maybe there's some information there about what's going on inside there. Face it, we don't have much to go on most of the time. For me it sounds like there's more gas in there or perhaps it's in larger pockets. I dunno but my normal bowel sounds were definitely much different to these ones.

 

[Common Response]

Hi allI live in Sydney and would really like to know where I can have the breath tests performed as per Mark Pimentel's protocol.CheersChris

Hi Chris.I had the gas tests performed as a public outpatient of the Gastroenterology Consulting Clinic Box Hill Hospital.Perhaps you can call them on 03 9895 3890, 9am-1pm Mon, Wed, & Fri. Maybe they can put you onto clinics operating in Sydney.I attended on 3 separate visits & had Lactose, Fructose, & baseline tests performed, learning I'm lactose intolerant & produce hydrogen.

 

[Jackson1980]

KathleenThanks for your responseI totally understand that my symptoms are more then likely typical IBS and not SIBO. Even so the treatment could be the same. What I really wanted to get a feel for is how many people have had the fructose and lactulose test and got the shits from it? I know the nurse who helped with the test said that it was not a normal occurence??I have read your comments many times about the gas stomach rumbling and I don't think you appreciate how bad it can be!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I do remember what a normal bowel / stomach growl sounds /felt like and it is NOTHING compared to what I get now. It always co-incides with bad gas days. It is that serious for me that I am very anxious and have almost changed careers over it.Life sometimes feels like having to survive a day rather then enjoying the day. I know there is always someone out there suffering more but still it sucks. Mark

 

[Kathleen M.]

From what I've heard people say it is fairly common for those to cause diarrhea.After all at least with fructose intolerance one of the symptoms is diarrhea and your colon doesn't know if you ate it in fruit, soft drink, or by itself. It will react the same in all cases, and for both of those things they give a pretty hefty dose.I understand the anxiety the noises cause, but as for "it means something diagnositically" it doesn't. It won't tell you anything about your condition and I've heard some pretty loud noises on occasion from people I know are healthy.If you have anxiety to the point you want to quit work and that is making it impossible to enjoy your day you may need to get treatment for the anxiety issues. Doesn't matter that you have a good reason to be anxious, anxiety often needs to be treated whether it comes from some "real" problem or people are anxious for no apparent reason. A lot of people seem to think if you have a reason to be anxious you shouldn't seek treatment, but whenever anxiety interferes with your life (like I'm going to quit work) it needs to be addressed no matter if you never had it before, and you feel you have a good reason to be anxious now.The anxiety alone will make all the IBS symptoms and the noises much worse than they would be if you didn't have it, so it can be a vicious cycle. You can't get the symptoms under control with severe anxiety going on and you can't get the anxiety under control with the severe symptoms.

 

[YETTC]

Thanks to both Jillywindy and Common Response for your posts. Some great info for me to go on with!CheersChris

 

[Moises]

If you research lactulose, it is used for a number of purposes. One of those purposes is as a laxative. So, it can cause D.If you do some insanely obscure research, you can find "off-label" uses of lactulose as a cure for D, though, possibly, using lower doses for longer time periods.I've got a lot of stuff that I am testing for my D and gas. But, eventually, I plan on testing lactulose as well. (Thanks to UrbanUrbane for point out to me this off-label use of lactulose.)

 

[timoti]

I'd be grateful to know which Auckland clinic you're referring to Jillywind - or if anyone else is aware of any good clinics or specialists in Auckland - particularly in relation to getting a SIBO breath test (TIA)