Bacteria May Be The Cause Of Irritable Bowel Syndrome
<<< Back to main document
Irritable
Bowel Syndrome (IBS) affects some 36 million people in the United
States. It has puzzled medical professionals and researchers who
have posed several theories about its origin. However, research
now indicates it is caused by an overgrowth of bacteria in the small
intestine.
After eating, IBS patients usually experience a combination of
bloating, gas, abdominal pain, constipation or diarrhea. These problems
trigger an immune response causing flu-like symptoms -- headaches,
joint pain, muscle aches and chronic fatigue. Investigators suggest
that in IBS sufferers, normal bacteria from the large intestine
move into the small intestine, prompting the initial bowel problems.
Bacteria, up to 100 trillion, are commonly found in the intestines;
they play several important roles in the large intestine.
Common medical tests would not detect an increase of bacteria in
the small intestine, so investigators took an indirect approach.
Patients ingested a lactulose syrup and within three hours their
breath was measured for gaseous products of bacterial fermentation.
Results indicated that 84 percent of IBS patients tested registered
abnormal breath tests that suggested an overgrowth of bacteria in
the small intestine.
Following double blind and placebo-controlled guidelines, researchers
gave patients either antibiotic therapy or a sugar pill. Those with
high bacteria levels who took antibiotics reported a 75 percent
improvement in symptoms.
Researchers concluded that small intestinal bacterial overgrowth
allows gut bacteria to penetrate the intestinal lining and enter
the body.
Science
Daily September 3, 2004
Dr. Mercola's Comment:
Researchers may have gotten good results with antibiotics but
you don't need them to solve IBS. In fact, a drug-based solution
makes no sense.
There are certainly times when antibiotics are necessary, but
they are widely overused. Unfortunately, for every time traditional
medicine uses them appropriately there are at least 10 to 20 times
when they are used and have caused
complications. It is this inappropriate use that has resulted
in antibiotic-resistant
bacteria and a need for a new type of treatment.
Occasionally antibiotics are required, however, and can save
one's life. If you are put on one, it is very important to remember
to take high-quality good
bacteria to replace the beneficial bacteria that are killed.
That's right. There are good bacteria. Many people are unaware
that daily exposure to our environment and even some habits considered
healthy -- like taking
antibiotics -- often kill these good bacteria essential for
health.
My favorite recommendation is to find a source of raw milk and
then produce kefir out of it. For those of you who don't know what
kefir is, it is similar to yogurt and is very similar to make. All
you do is stir in a kefir packet and room temperature raw milk and
let it sit on the counter overnight and when you wake up in the
morning the bacteria have reproduced and converted the milk into
an many hundreds of billions of healthy bacteria.
If you want to try raw milk for yourself, look for a farm in your
state by
following this link.
If there's no resource for raw milk close to you, you may want to
try Organic Pastures Organic
Raw Milk. This raw milk is high in antioxidants, vitamins (including
B-12), all 22 essential amino acids, natural enzymes (including
lactase), natural probiotics and good fatty acids.
To battle IBS, you need to focus on what you are eating and
how you are living. A few steps could get you and your intestines
back on track:
-
Make better food choices.
Pay careful attention to removing grains and sugars as they
typically feed bad bacteria and gluten in particular can cause
serious intestinal inflammation in many individuals.
-
If you have problems with the frequency of your bowel movements
please consider purchasing some organic flax seeds and grind
2 to 6 tablespoons fresh in a coffee grinder and consume it.
It is full of alpha linolenic acid which will balance the omega
3 oils in cod liver or fish oil, but more importantly flax has
water soluble fibers like lignans that will decrease diarrhea
or improve constipation as these types of fibers are bowel movement
normalizers. Freshly ground flax seed is a far better option
than psyllium or Metamucil
-
Eating for your metabolic
type will get your body to operate at its optimum level.
-
Add coconut oil and
coconut to your diet. Coconut
oil has been shown to play a role in soothing inflammation and
healing injury in the digestive tract. Its antimicrobial properties
also promote intestinal health by killing troublesome microorganisms
that may cause chronic inflammation.
-
In my experience, there usually is an underlying emotional
stress or anxiety associated with IBS patients. EFT is an excellent
tool to address this stress. Learn more about it by reading
my free manual.
Back to top of Document
