Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO) Breath Testing
SIBO is short for Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth. SIBO is one of the most common and most missed reasons for bloating, gas, and digestive discomfort. It happens when bacteria that belong further down in your large intestine end up overgrowing in your small intestine, where they ferment your food before you’ve had a chance to absorb it. A simple at-home breath test can confirm whether SIBO is what’s driving your symptoms.
What you should know about SIBO
What it measures
Hydrogen and methane gases along with and hydrogen sulfide, produced by bacteria in your small intestine after you drink a specific sugar solution. The pattern and timing of the gases tell us which type of SIBO you have: hydrogen-dominant, methane-dominant, or mixed. This determines our next step in treatment and healing options. This can be done with antibiotics or herbal supplements. Most people choose herbal supplements due to the ability to rebuild the good bacteria faster and regain homeostasis.
Symptoms it helps explain
Bloating that gets worse as the day goes on, gas that feels relentless, abdominal pain or distension, constipation, diarrhea (or both alternating), reflux, food sensitivities that came on in adulthood, brain fog after meals, and the frustrating sense that “everything I eat seems to bother me.”
What we’ll do with results
We’ll identify which type of SIBO is present and build a layered treatment plan, usually a combination of targeted antimicrobials (often herbal), a temporary diet adjustment to starve the overgrowth, a prokinetic to keep things moving, and longer-term work on the root cause so SIBO doesn’t simply return.
When bloating doesn’t quit
SIBO is sneaky because the symptoms look identical to other gut conditions including IBS, food intolerances, leaky gut. But oftentimes until the overgrowth is addressed, no amount of dietary tweaking will fully resolve them. The breath test is the only direct way to confirm SIBO. You’ll drink a lactulose solution, then collect breath samples at intervals over three hours, all at home. The gases your bacteria produce as they ferment the sugar tell us exactly what we’re dealing with.
SIBO almost always has a root cause behind it. This includes slow motility, low stomach acid, prior food poisoning, structural issues, or chronic stress, which is why simply killing the overgrowth without addressing why it took hold often leads to relapse. That deeper, root-cause work is the part we focus on most.
Common Questions about SIBO Breath Testing
You’ll follow a specific diet for the day or two leading up to the test (your kit will include detailed instructions), then fast overnight before collecting your samples. The whole process takes about three hours and is done from home.
The GI-MAP looks at the bacteria living in your large intestine, which you can think of as “normal real estate”. SIBO is when those bacteria migrate up into the small intestine, where they shouldn’t be. The two tests work together: GI-MAP shows the broader microbial environment, while the SIBO breath test confirms whether there’s overgrowth specifically in the small intestine.
Usually a layered approach: a targeted antimicrobial phase (often herbal, sometimes prescription) to reduce the overgrowth, a temporary dietary shift to stop feeding it, a prokinetic (gastrointestinal motility agent) to support natural motility, and longer-term work on whatever allowed SIBO to take hold in the first place. Relapse is common when the root cause isn’t addressed, that’s why we don’t stop at the kill phase. I continue to work with you throughout the healing phase and beyond.
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With highly trained practitioners, including a Nurse Practitioner with over 20 years of experience in clinical medicine. We consider the whole person and focus on uncovering the cause of your symptoms.