Got IBS? Why It Might Really Be Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO)
What happens when bacteria colonise your small intestine, where they don’t belong
At about 20 feet (7 metres) long, the small intestine is really not that small at all. Or insignificant: it is the industrial hub of food digestion and absorption. With so much metabolic activity going on, the potential for mayhem is immense.
Irritable bowel syndrome is defined as a common disorder, with symptoms that include cramping, bloating, excessive gas, constipation and diarrhoea.
But the truth is that IBS is not so much a disorder as an umbrella term. It means: there’s something wrong with your gut, but we don’t know what. All your tests are negative, but you’ve still got all the symptoms. It’s a mystery.
Or is it SIBO?
Know your nemesis
Your colon is teeming with life, an invisible city of microorganisms that thrive on the remnants of your meals. But the small intestine is quite another matter. It has relatively few microbes; it’s not sterile, but it’s a pretty rural location, compared to the colon.
Food in the small intestine is broken down into particles small enough to pass through the gut lining and enter the bloodstream. Carbohydrates are reduced to simple…
