Your breath samples are then collected at regular intervals over the course of about three hours and measured for methane and hydrogen gas. For this particular diagnostic test, you drink a sugar solution consisting of either glucose or lactulose. Technically a lab finding, not a health condition, SIBO can be detected through an at-home breath test. What Is a Bacterial Overgrowth Breath Test ? It may even create or contribute to metabolic dysfunction, such as weight gain, and elevated blood sugar and lipids. Research supports that SIBO is also linked to a wide array of gastrointestinal disorders, like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), Celiac disease, and Crohn’s disease. Carbohydrate, fructose, or lactose intolerance.Mood changes like depression and anxiety.īecause of the numerous connections between the gut and other systems in the body, SIBO also tends to come with non-digestive symptoms, including: It’s believed to cause many digestive symptoms, including excessive gas, bloating, cramping, abdominal pain, reflux, and stool changes, like diarrhea and constipation. Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, or SIBO, is well-recognized in the functional medicine community for contributing to a wide array of disruptive health symptoms. Why You May Be Considering a Bacterial Overgrowth Breath Test Let’s dig into the details of bacterial overgrowth breath tests. This can help you get to the root of your symptoms before moving on to other targeted SIBO treatments, like prescription antibiotics. These therapies are often helpful, whether you test positive for SIBO or not, and can save you some time and money otherwise spent on a breath test.īut when all else fails, it may be time to recruit a healthcare provider and seek out a breath test or other type of dysbiosis testing. While a bacterial overgrowth breath test can help guide your treatment options, and improvements in repeat testing may indicate symptom relief, it’s more beneficial to focus on treating your symptoms - not just normalizing labs.įortunately, many people with symptoms of SIBO can benefit from dietary changes and targeted supplements, like probiotics and natural antimicrobials, without having to undergo a breath test first. However, there are a few things to be cautious of: SIBO breath test results often don’t correlate with symptoms, can result in false positives, and may miss other types of imbalances in the gut microbiota.ĭue to these limitations, it may be best to skip the breath test as a first step in your recovery from SIBO-like symptoms - or at the very least, make sure you’re working with an experienced practitioner who can properly interpret your results (and doesn’t rely too heavily on them). Breath tests are moderately useful when interpreted properly and used at the right time. This makes the bacterial overgrowth breath test a top contender for diagnosing SIBO. However, pursuing a diagnosis of SIBO can be tricky, as the gold standard for testing is an invasive endoscopy. If you’re struggling with symptoms like gas, bloating, stool changes, fatigue, and food sensitivities, you have likely stumbled across small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) in your search for answers. ![]() It may be best to seek out a bacterial overgrowth breath test and other types of digestive testing after you’ve implemented dietary and lifestyle changes, and supplements like probiotics.Breath tests might indicate some type of imbalance in the GI tract, and retesting after treatment may correlate with SIBO symptom improvement (but not always).Other types of dysbiosis, such as hydrogen sulfide SIBO and small intestinal fungal overgrowth (SIFO), aren’t detected on standard methane and hydrogen breath tests, but can be picked up by newer tests like the TrioSmart breath test.Breath tests don’t always correlate with SIBO symptoms and may not perfectly correspond with clinical recovery.Bacterial overgrowth breath tests are a non-invasive method for diagnosing small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), which can be accompanied by symptoms of bloating, stool changes, headaches, and skin disorders.
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