June 16, 2025 • 18 mins
Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, or SIBO, is now rampant, a virtual nationwide epidemic, a condition now carried by around 50% of the population. If you have food intolerances, fibromyalgia, restless leg syndrome, are overweight or obese, have irritable bowel syndrome, an autoimmune condition, atrial fibrillation or numerous other common conditions, it is highly likely that SIBO is either the original cause or at least an exacerbating factor. You can take all the antiinflammatory drugs, biologics, weight loss drugs or numerous other pharmaceutical “fixes” but, unless the SIBO is dealt with, you will lose this battle and more health problems are in your future.
In this episode of the Defiant Health podcast, Let’s identify 10 unexpected ways that tell you that, yes, you’ve got this condition. Then let’s talk about what you can do about it naturally and without drugs.
Books:
Super Gut: The 4-Week Plan to Reprogram Your Microbiome, Restore Health, and Lose Weight
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
William Davis, MD (00:06):
Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth,
or SIBO, is now rampant, avirtual nationwide epidemic, a
condition now carried by about50% of the population.
If you have food intolerances,fibromyalgia, restless leg
syndrome, are overweight orobese, have irritable bowel
(00:28):
syndrome, sleep apnea, anautoimmune condition, atrial
fibrillation or numerous othercommon conditions, it is highly
likely that SIBO is either theoriginal cause or at least an
exacerbating factor, or at leastan exacerbating factor.
You can take all theanti-inflammatory drugs,
biologics, weight loss drugs ornumerous other pharmaceutical
(00:50):
fixes, but unless the SIBO isdealt with, you will lose this
battle and more health problemswill be in your future.
In this episode of the DefiantHealth Podcast, let's identify
10 unexpected ways that tell youthat, yes, you've got this
condition.
Then let's talk about what youcan do about it, naturally and
(01:11):
without drugs.
Let's discuss some of theunusual and unexpected ways that
small intestinal bacterialovergrowth, sibo, can show
itself.
You may already know that thereare common symptoms that tell
you you have SIBO, such as thesigns or symptoms of irritable
(01:35):
bowel syndrome diarrhea,abdominal discomfort, bloating.
Those are signs often diagnosedas irritable bowel syndrome,
but are also almost always dueto SIBO.
That's why IBS responds toantibiotics like Xifaxan, other
conditions, other signs of SIBO.
Common signs would be foodintolerances, whether it's to
(01:57):
nightshades, fodmaps,histamine-containing foods,
fructose-containing foods and somany other forms.
Those are all also signs ofSIBO.
The solution, of course, is notto remove the food, though you
can do that in the near term toobtain relief, but the long-term
solution is to address the SIBO.
And then there are conditionsvirtually synonymous with SIBO,
(02:18):
such as fibromyalgia and Russ'sleg syndrome.
Those are almost always causedby SIBO, and addressing the SIBO
, of course, is the solution.
Now, this applies to about halfthe population.
How do I know that?
Why do I say that?
Well, it's very easy.
Go through the several dozenstudies that have been performed
over the last decade in whichthis question was asked In
(02:42):
condition blank.
What proportion of people testpositive for SIBO?
Usually using hydrogen breathtesting, because microbes
produce hydrogen gas on thebreath, but you do not.
So we can measure hydrogen gason the breath and use timing to
map where microbes are living inthe human gastrointestinal
(03:04):
tract.
Well, that method has been used, along with some other methods
In, for instance, irritablebowel syndrome, ibs.
So, of the 60 to 70 millionAmericans with IBS, what
proportion tests positive?
Well, it varies from study tostudy, but about, on average 31%
.
So that's at least 18 millionpeople right there.
(03:25):
How about Americans withobesity?
There's about 110 millionpeople in the US with obesity.
What proportion will testpositive for SIBO?
About 50%.
We'll add another 55 millionpeople to the list.
What about type 2 diabetes?
Neurodegenerative disorders,autoimmune conditions, sleep
(03:46):
apnea, rosacea, psoriasis,depression, anxiety, suicidal
thoughts Add up all the commonconditions that afflict modern
people and you can easily exceed100 million, more likely, 150
million people, million peopleNow.
At first I was reluctant tobelieve that until we started
(04:07):
testing for H2 on the breath,including using this device, the
AIR device A-I-R-E, made by thecompany Food Marble, with which
I have no formal relationship.
I know the inventor, dr AngusShort, who's been very helpful
for us, so he invented thisdevice that detects hydrogen gas
on the breath.
This is the original one.
A more recent version of it isdifferent colors, black, and
also measures methane for adifferent form of of overgrowth,
(04:29):
but doing this on a broad scale, and numerous people showed
that.
Oh yeah, sibo positive H2 onthe breath early upon ingestion
of a fiber is is everywhere.
It's rampant, it common, infact.
I find that the exceptionalperson is the one who tests
negative.
Now there's a whole method totesting with the air device.
(04:50):
See my SuperGut book, see myblog williamdavismdcom blog and
you see the process we use todetect hydrogen gas, because
there's a protocol to follow.
It's very simple, but you wantto get clean information.
You don't have to get the airdivided.
It is very helpful, but youdon't have to because it's so
common and because the solutionwe now have is so benign, so
(05:11):
accessible, so inexpensive thatyou don't really have to be all
that confident whether or notyou have SIBO.
And the solution we have thatwe'll talk about later, what I
call SIBO yogurt has so manyspectacular benefits that you
could just do the SIBO yogurteven if you don't have SIBO.
But it is the solution we'vebeen using with unexpected
(05:33):
efficacy.
So what are some of thoseunexpected or unusual signs that
you have SIBO?
So, in addition to the ones Ilisted earlier, how about atrial
fibrillation, a very commonheart rhythm disorder?
That's very troublesome.
You have to go to the ER andthe hospital numerous times.
You have to go through multipleforms of medication Medication
to slow the heart rate,medication to provide
(05:56):
anticoagulation to prevent youfrom having blood clots in the
heart and left atrial appendagethat causes catastrophic strokes
, medication to try to convertthe rhythm back to normal
cardioversion, passing a currentthrough your chest, all kinds
of procedures.
It's very bothersome.
Once you have atrialfibrillation, the rule is
repeated recurrences.
Well, one of the effects ofSIBO, via endotoxemia.
(06:19):
Remember that phenomena whenyou have microbes invading the
small intestine, trillions offecal microbes.
They live and die in just aspace of a few hours.
When they die they releasetheir toxic components, like
endotoxin, into the intestineswhich then gain entry into the
bloodstream because the smallintestine is very permeable and
(06:40):
that's called endotoxemia.
So endotoxemia is a trigger forrecurrence of atrial
fibrillation.
We can say that endotoxemia orSIBO causes atrial fibrillation,
but it's clearly responsiblefor the recurrences, the
frequent recurrences, which arevery bothersome.
You end up going to theemergency room, the hospital,
repeatedly.
Well, this is a way to cut backon recurrences, restoring
(07:02):
normal microbiome andgastrointestinal system by
reducing fecal microbes.
Depression, low moods, suicidalthoughts these are very common
signs of endotoxemia from SIBO.
You can imagine prescribingthese SSRI drugs is really just
a band-aid for depression.
(07:23):
They're a very deeply flawedclass of drugs to begin with,
right Sometimes causing suicide,particularly in teenagers, and
often lack efficacy.
Well, one of the drivers ofdepression is endotoxemia.
We know this with confidencebecause there now have been
about half a dozen studies,remarkably, in which
non-depressed people were givenintravenous injections of that
(07:47):
endotoxin and they becameclinically depressed within
hours, with MRI brain scanevidence of all the signs of
depression.
So we now know with confidenceEndotoxemia major driver of
depression, panic attacks.
Likewise people who suffer frompanic who are prescribed
benzodiazepines and other drugs.
(08:09):
This is also a reflection ofSIBO and endotoxemia.
So you can imagine a sedativedrug is not the solution.
It might be a temporaryband-aid, but addressing the
source of the panic, that isSIBO and endotoxemia, is a more
rational long-term solution.
How about endometriosis?
A condition in which women havetissue, uterine tissue, enter
(08:33):
the peritoneal cavity, that is,the abdominal cavity or the
pelvic cavity, and it causes alot of pain.
These ladies go throughrepeated surgeries that are
often unsuccessful.
It's very debilitating and it'snow known that a major driver
is SIBO and endotoxemia.
So you can still go throughsurgery.
It wouldn't be better toaddress the cause or at least
the trigger for recurrences SIBOand endotoxemia so you can
still go through surgery.
(08:53):
It wouldn't be better toaddress the cause or at least
the trigger for recurrencesC-bone endotoxemia?
How about a disruption of yourmenstrual cycles, either
irregularity or excessiveemotionality, or excessive
bleeding and cramps.
These are likewise Obviouslymenstrual cycles are not caused
by C-bone endotoxemia, but theexcessive pain, bleeding etc.
(09:14):
Can be caused by seaboneendotoxemia.
So we don't do away withmenstrual cycles, of course, but
we can at least reduce thetroublesome symptoms that
accompany menstrual cycles.
Prostate disease veryinteresting.
Prostate disease is proven tobe a disease of loss of
beneficial microbes likelactobacillus crespatus.
(09:36):
Probably that's preliminary theinvasion of other microbes,
interestingly oral microbes likeporphyromonus or fusibacterium,
urinary microbes,gastrointestinal microbes, skin
microbes like cutobacterium.
So I call the prostate thegrand central station of the
microbiome because it seems likeall the microbiomes of other
(09:57):
body parts seem to transactthrough the prostate gland.
But one of the major players inprostate disease, whether it's
prostatitis, benign prostatichypertrophy, bph or even
prostate cancer, a big factor isSIBO and endotoxemia.
So very important.
So while you can go through allthe things they do procedures,
(10:21):
drugs for prostate disease youwant to make sure you also
address the SIBO and endotoxemia.
That is a very important driverof prostate disease.
Fatty liver you know, the venoussystem that drains the
gastrointestinal tract is calledthe portal venous system.
So when the veins drain thesmall and large intestines into
(10:43):
the portal vein.
It goes directly straight tothe liver.
So the liver is the recipientof a flood of endotoxin, much
more so than the systemiccirculation, because systemic
circulation comes from afterbeing filtered by the liver, but
the portal circulation isfilled with endotoxin and your
poor liver takes a beating.
(11:03):
So it's one of the majordrivers.
There are other factors alsodiet, of course, the.
It seemed like conversationsabout hepatic or liver de novo
lipogenesis, the conversion, theliver's capacity to convert
carbohydrates carbohydrates likeamylopectin A of wheat and
grains, as well as sugars totriglycerides.
De novo lipogenesis, creationof new fats, triglycerides, some
(11:26):
of which stay in the liver andcause fatty liver.
But the process of portalvenous endotoxemia amplifies the
entire effect dramatically.
So diet's important in reducingfatty liver See my other
conversations about that wholetopic but also addressing SIBO
and thereby portal venousendotoxemia.
(11:48):
How about grand mal seizures?
These are often a big problem,some children who can have
intractable seizures and theycan actually have brain damage
from having 5, 8, 10 grand malseizures per day.
One of the treatments, ofcourse, is a ketogenic diet.
But why does that work?
It's not quite clear why itworks, but it's likely that one
of the ways it works is byreducing bacterial diversity in
(12:12):
the gastrointestinal tract andthereby reducing both the
presence of SIBO invading fecalmicrobes in the small intestine
as well as the colon andreducing endotoxemia.
Now, the SIBO and endotoxemiaare not the cause of the
seizures.
They are like atrialfibrillation they're the trigger
for recurrences of the seizures.
(12:32):
So when somebody goes on, aketogenic diet has an impact on
the gastrointestinal microbiome,by the way, not all beneficial.
There are some adverse effectsthat also develop, such as the
overproliferation of acromantia,acromantia muciniphila, mucus
lover.
Acromantia has the peculiarcapacity, when deprived of
(12:52):
fibers, as often happens inthese diets, to turn to human
mucus, and that's a verydestructive process.
But one of the effects is areduction in fecal microbes, a
reduction in bacterial diversity, thereby a reduction in
endotoxemia and thereby part ofthe reason why there's a
reduction in recurrent grand malseizures when you stop
consuming fibers.
(13:14):
Another issue breast cancer andother cancers.
Sibo and endotoxemia are provento be major drivers because of
several reasons.
One it inflames the breasttissue, the endotoxemia does,
and there's a distortion ofestrogen metabolism.
There's an increase in estrogento higher levels than normal,
and that is a driver of breastcancer.
(13:35):
So while you can do all kindsof things to prevent breast
cancer.
One of the things you want tomake sure you do is to address
the SIBO and endotoxemia.
This, of course, also addressesrisk for other forms of cancer.
Also, how about vitamin B12deficiency?
For your absorption of vitaminB12, it requires a participation
of the stomach and of the ileum, the distal portion of the
(13:57):
small intestine.
Well, in SIBO, those twolocations stomach and ileum are
populated by invading fecalmicrobes and they are very good
at blocking absorption ofnutrients or production of
factors that encourage theirabsorption.
And so B12 deficiency tends tobe a very good sign that you
have SIBO and endotoxemiainvolving the stomach and the
(14:21):
ilium.
Now there are many other signsand symptoms of SIBO that we
could talk aboutNeurodegenerative conditions,
autoimmune conditions, sleepapnea, numerous Virtually all
the conditions you're familiarwith in modern people are either
caused by or worsened by thisprocess of SIBO and endotoxin.
So key, recognize this.
(14:43):
How do you get rid of it?
Well, talk to agastroenterologist.
Most will say well, I don't.
Even I don't do that.
I had gastroenterologists saythings like well, I don't, I
can't be bothered.
I send them back to theirprimary care doctor to manage it
.
The primary care doctor almostnever has anything, knows
anything about SIBO andendotoxemia, so you're left in
(15:04):
the dark.
If the doctor, if yourgastroenterologist or primary
care doctor is among the rarepractitioners who does know
something about SIBO, they mightsay well, here, take this
prescription for Xifaxan, anantibiotic.
It's expensive, it's got sideeffects.
It does work about 55 to 60% ofthe time.
It's not foolproof.
It can help.
There's almost no mention,though, in that conversation
(15:26):
about how you got it, how toprevent recurrences, how to
begin the process of rebuildinga healthy gastrointestinal
microbiome.
All that's just left.
You're left hanging.
What we've been doing instead isrestoring microbes you've lost,
but especially microbialspecies that colonize the small
intestine that's where SIBOoccurs right and have the
(15:50):
capacity to produce what arecalled bacteriocins natural
antibiotics effective in killingthe invading fecal microbial
species of SIBO.
I call that.
We ferment it.
We use my method of prolongedfermentation 36 hours to allow
at least the bacteria to double12 times.
(16:11):
Bacteria don't have sex right,they just double themselves.
So double 12 times, and wetypically get in the
neighborhood of 300 billionmicrobes for a half cup or 120
milliliters serving, consumehalf cup per day.
That has proven surprisinglyeffective, and because we're
using three microbial speciesthat most people have lost
(16:32):
Lactobacillus rhodori, that youmay be familiar with,
lactobacillus gasseri those twoare great producers, colonize a
small intestine and greatproducers of bactericids,
effective mostly to theclassification of bacteria known
as gram-negatives, which is aspecific type of cell wall they
have.
But also we add bacillussubtilis and that adds the
(16:55):
capacity to kill gram-positivespecies, different kind of
microbes like enterococcus,streptococcus and staphylococcus
.
So that combination, those threelactobacillus rhodori,
lactobacillus gasseri, bacillussubtilis, co-fermented or
individually fermented yourchoice to high counts over 36
hours, that has beenunexpectedly and miraculously
(17:18):
effective in normalizing breathhydrogen gas or, if you're not
measuring hydrogen gas, innormalizing many of the signs
and symptoms of SIBO.
For instance, if you werepreviously intolerant to legumes
or FODMAPs or eggs or whatever,the vast majority of people,
typically after four weeks ofconsumption of the SIBO yogurt,
(17:39):
are now tolerant.
Typically after four weeks ofconsumption of placebo yogurt
are now tolerant.
Or if you have some phenomenonlike a skin rash or some kind of
pain or depression, more oftenthan not you'll feel those
conditions receding when you dothis.
If you don't know what I'mtalking about, please see my
recipe.
There's a recipe in my SuperGut book.
There's also a recipe in mywilliamdavismdcom blog and, of
(18:00):
course, my membership website,drdavisinfinitehealthcom, where
you can join conversations.
We talk about these kinds ofthings, but the key here is to
understand what we're doing isrestoring beneficial keystone
microbes that colonize the smallintestine and produce
bactericides, and you can dothis from the comfort of your
(18:21):
own kitchen.
Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth,
or SIBO, is now rampant, avirtual nationwide epidemic, a
condition now carried by about50% of the population.
If you have food intolerances,fibromyalgia, restless leg
syndrome, are overweight orobese, have irritable bowel
(00:28):
syndrome, sleep apnea, anautoimmune condition, atrial
fibrillation or numerous othercommon conditions, it is highly
likely that SIBO is either theoriginal cause or at least an
exacerbating factor, or at leastan exacerbating factor.
You can take all theanti-inflammatory drugs,
biologics, weight loss drugs ornumerous other pharmaceutical
(00:50):
fixes, but unless the SIBO isdealt with, you will lose this
battle and more health problemswill be in your future.
In this episode of the DefiantHealth Podcast, let's identify
10 unexpected ways that tell youthat, yes, you've got this
condition.
Then let's talk about what youcan do about it, naturally and
(01:11):
without drugs.
Let's discuss some of theunusual and unexpected ways that
small intestinal bacterialovergrowth, sibo, can show
itself.
You may already know that thereare common symptoms that tell
you you have SIBO, such as thesigns or symptoms of irritable
(01:35):
bowel syndrome diarrhea,abdominal discomfort, bloating.
Those are signs often diagnosedas irritable bowel syndrome,
but are also almost always dueto SIBO.
That's why IBS responds toantibiotics like Xifaxan, other
conditions, other signs of SIBO.
Common signs would be foodintolerances, whether it's to
(01:57):
nightshades, fodmaps,histamine-containing foods,
fructose-containing foods and somany other forms.
Those are all also signs ofSIBO.
The solution, of course, is notto remove the food, though you
can do that in the near term toobtain relief, but the long-term
solution is to address the SIBO.
And then there are conditionsvirtually synonymous with SIBO,
(02:18):
such as fibromyalgia and Russ'sleg syndrome.
Those are almost always causedby SIBO, and addressing the SIBO
, of course, is the solution.
Now, this applies to about halfthe population.
How do I know that?
Why do I say that?
Well, it's very easy.
Go through the several dozenstudies that have been performed
over the last decade in whichthis question was asked In
(02:42):
condition blank.
What proportion of people testpositive for SIBO?
Usually using hydrogen breathtesting, because microbes
produce hydrogen gas on thebreath, but you do not.
So we can measure hydrogen gason the breath and use timing to
map where microbes are living inthe human gastrointestinal
(03:04):
tract.
Well, that method has been used, along with some other methods
In, for instance, irritablebowel syndrome, ibs.
So, of the 60 to 70 millionAmericans with IBS, what
proportion tests positive?
Well, it varies from study tostudy, but about, on average 31%
.
So that's at least 18 millionpeople right there.
(03:25):
How about Americans withobesity?
There's about 110 millionpeople in the US with obesity.
What proportion will testpositive for SIBO?
About 50%.
We'll add another 55 millionpeople to the list.
What about type 2 diabetes?
Neurodegenerative disorders,autoimmune conditions, sleep
(03:46):
apnea, rosacea, psoriasis,depression, anxiety, suicidal
thoughts Add up all the commonconditions that afflict modern
people and you can easily exceed100 million, more likely, 150
million people, million peopleNow.
At first I was reluctant tobelieve that until we started
(04:07):
testing for H2 on the breath,including using this device, the
AIR device A-I-R-E, made by thecompany Food Marble, with which
I have no formal relationship.
I know the inventor, dr AngusShort, who's been very helpful
for us, so he invented thisdevice that detects hydrogen gas
on the breath.
This is the original one.
A more recent version of it isdifferent colors, black, and
also measures methane for adifferent form of of overgrowth,
(04:29):
but doing this on a broad scale, and numerous people showed
that.
Oh yeah, sibo positive H2 onthe breath early upon ingestion
of a fiber is is everywhere.
It's rampant, it common, infact.
I find that the exceptionalperson is the one who tests
negative.
Now there's a whole method totesting with the air device.
(04:50):
See my SuperGut book, see myblog williamdavismdcom blog and
you see the process we use todetect hydrogen gas, because
there's a protocol to follow.
It's very simple, but you wantto get clean information.
You don't have to get the airdivided.
It is very helpful, but youdon't have to because it's so
common and because the solutionwe now have is so benign, so
(05:11):
accessible, so inexpensive thatyou don't really have to be all
that confident whether or notyou have SIBO.
And the solution we have thatwe'll talk about later, what I
call SIBO yogurt has so manyspectacular benefits that you
could just do the SIBO yogurteven if you don't have SIBO.
But it is the solution we'vebeen using with unexpected
(05:33):
efficacy.
So what are some of thoseunexpected or unusual signs that
you have SIBO?
So, in addition to the ones Ilisted earlier, how about atrial
fibrillation, a very commonheart rhythm disorder?
That's very troublesome.
You have to go to the ER andthe hospital numerous times.
You have to go through multipleforms of medication Medication
to slow the heart rate,medication to provide
(05:56):
anticoagulation to prevent youfrom having blood clots in the
heart and left atrial appendagethat causes catastrophic strokes
, medication to try to convertthe rhythm back to normal
cardioversion, passing a currentthrough your chest, all kinds
of procedures.
It's very bothersome.
Once you have atrialfibrillation, the rule is
repeated recurrences.
Well, one of the effects ofSIBO, via endotoxemia.
(06:19):
Remember that phenomena whenyou have microbes invading the
small intestine, trillions offecal microbes.
They live and die in just aspace of a few hours.
When they die they releasetheir toxic components, like
endotoxin, into the intestineswhich then gain entry into the
bloodstream because the smallintestine is very permeable and
(06:40):
that's called endotoxemia.
So endotoxemia is a trigger forrecurrence of atrial
fibrillation.
We can say that endotoxemia orSIBO causes atrial fibrillation,
but it's clearly responsiblefor the recurrences, the
frequent recurrences, which arevery bothersome.
You end up going to theemergency room, the hospital,
repeatedly.
Well, this is a way to cut backon recurrences, restoring
(07:02):
normal microbiome andgastrointestinal system by
reducing fecal microbes.
Depression, low moods, suicidalthoughts these are very common
signs of endotoxemia from SIBO.
You can imagine prescribingthese SSRI drugs is really just
a band-aid for depression.
(07:23):
They're a very deeply flawedclass of drugs to begin with,
right Sometimes causing suicide,particularly in teenagers, and
often lack efficacy.
Well, one of the drivers ofdepression is endotoxemia.
We know this with confidencebecause there now have been
about half a dozen studies,remarkably, in which
non-depressed people were givenintravenous injections of that
(07:47):
endotoxin and they becameclinically depressed within
hours, with MRI brain scanevidence of all the signs of
depression.
So we now know with confidenceEndotoxemia major driver of
depression, panic attacks.
Likewise people who suffer frompanic who are prescribed
benzodiazepines and other drugs.
(08:09):
This is also a reflection ofSIBO and endotoxemia.
So you can imagine a sedativedrug is not the solution.
It might be a temporaryband-aid, but addressing the
source of the panic, that isSIBO and endotoxemia, is a more
rational long-term solution.
How about endometriosis?
A condition in which women havetissue, uterine tissue, enter
(08:33):
the peritoneal cavity, that is,the abdominal cavity or the
pelvic cavity, and it causes alot of pain.
These ladies go throughrepeated surgeries that are
often unsuccessful.
It's very debilitating and it'snow known that a major driver
is SIBO and endotoxemia.
So you can still go throughsurgery.
It wouldn't be better toaddress the cause or at least
the trigger for recurrences SIBOand endotoxemia so you can
still go through surgery.
(08:53):
It wouldn't be better toaddress the cause or at least
the trigger for recurrencesC-bone endotoxemia?
How about a disruption of yourmenstrual cycles, either
irregularity or excessiveemotionality, or excessive
bleeding and cramps.
These are likewise Obviouslymenstrual cycles are not caused
by C-bone endotoxemia, but theexcessive pain, bleeding etc.
(09:14):
Can be caused by seaboneendotoxemia.
So we don't do away withmenstrual cycles, of course, but
we can at least reduce thetroublesome symptoms that
accompany menstrual cycles.
Prostate disease veryinteresting.
Prostate disease is proven tobe a disease of loss of
beneficial microbes likelactobacillus crespatus.
(09:36):
Probably that's preliminary theinvasion of other microbes,
interestingly oral microbes likeporphyromonus or fusibacterium,
urinary microbes,gastrointestinal microbes, skin
microbes like cutobacterium.
So I call the prostate thegrand central station of the
microbiome because it seems likeall the microbiomes of other
(09:57):
body parts seem to transactthrough the prostate gland.
But one of the major players inprostate disease, whether it's
prostatitis, benign prostatichypertrophy, bph or even
prostate cancer, a big factor isSIBO and endotoxemia.
So very important.
So while you can go through allthe things they do procedures,
(10:21):
drugs for prostate disease youwant to make sure you also
address the SIBO and endotoxemia.
That is a very important driverof prostate disease.
Fatty liver you know, the venoussystem that drains the
gastrointestinal tract is calledthe portal venous system.
So when the veins drain thesmall and large intestines into
(10:43):
the portal vein.
It goes directly straight tothe liver.
So the liver is the recipientof a flood of endotoxin, much
more so than the systemiccirculation, because systemic
circulation comes from afterbeing filtered by the liver, but
the portal circulation isfilled with endotoxin and your
poor liver takes a beating.
(11:03):
So it's one of the majordrivers.
There are other factors alsodiet, of course, the.
It seemed like conversationsabout hepatic or liver de novo
lipogenesis, the conversion, theliver's capacity to convert
carbohydrates carbohydrates likeamylopectin A of wheat and
grains, as well as sugars totriglycerides.
De novo lipogenesis, creationof new fats, triglycerides, some
(11:26):
of which stay in the liver andcause fatty liver.
But the process of portalvenous endotoxemia amplifies the
entire effect dramatically.
So diet's important in reducingfatty liver See my other
conversations about that wholetopic but also addressing SIBO
and thereby portal venousendotoxemia.
(11:48):
How about grand mal seizures?
These are often a big problem,some children who can have
intractable seizures and theycan actually have brain damage
from having 5, 8, 10 grand malseizures per day.
One of the treatments, ofcourse, is a ketogenic diet.
But why does that work?
It's not quite clear why itworks, but it's likely that one
of the ways it works is byreducing bacterial diversity in
(12:12):
the gastrointestinal tract andthereby reducing both the
presence of SIBO invading fecalmicrobes in the small intestine
as well as the colon andreducing endotoxemia.
Now, the SIBO and endotoxemiaare not the cause of the
seizures.
They are like atrialfibrillation they're the trigger
for recurrences of the seizures.
(12:32):
So when somebody goes on, aketogenic diet has an impact on
the gastrointestinal microbiome,by the way, not all beneficial.
There are some adverse effectsthat also develop, such as the
overproliferation of acromantia,acromantia muciniphila, mucus
lover.
Acromantia has the peculiarcapacity, when deprived of
(12:52):
fibers, as often happens inthese diets, to turn to human
mucus, and that's a verydestructive process.
But one of the effects is areduction in fecal microbes, a
reduction in bacterial diversity, thereby a reduction in
endotoxemia and thereby part ofthe reason why there's a
reduction in recurrent grand malseizures when you stop
consuming fibers.
(13:14):
Another issue breast cancer andother cancers.
Sibo and endotoxemia are provento be major drivers because of
several reasons.
One it inflames the breasttissue, the endotoxemia does,
and there's a distortion ofestrogen metabolism.
There's an increase in estrogento higher levels than normal,
and that is a driver of breastcancer.
(13:35):
So while you can do all kindsof things to prevent breast
cancer.
One of the things you want tomake sure you do is to address
the SIBO and endotoxemia.
This, of course, also addressesrisk for other forms of cancer.
Also, how about vitamin B12deficiency?
For your absorption of vitaminB12, it requires a participation
of the stomach and of the ileum, the distal portion of the
(13:57):
small intestine.
Well, in SIBO, those twolocations stomach and ileum are
populated by invading fecalmicrobes and they are very good
at blocking absorption ofnutrients or production of
factors that encourage theirabsorption.
And so B12 deficiency tends tobe a very good sign that you
have SIBO and endotoxemiainvolving the stomach and the
(14:21):
ilium.
Now there are many other signsand symptoms of SIBO that we
could talk aboutNeurodegenerative conditions,
autoimmune conditions, sleepapnea, numerous Virtually all
the conditions you're familiarwith in modern people are either
caused by or worsened by thisprocess of SIBO and endotoxin.
So key, recognize this.
(14:43):
How do you get rid of it?
Well, talk to agastroenterologist.
Most will say well, I don't.
Even I don't do that.
I had gastroenterologists saythings like well, I don't, I
can't be bothered.
I send them back to theirprimary care doctor to manage it
.
The primary care doctor almostnever has anything, knows
anything about SIBO andendotoxemia, so you're left in
(15:04):
the dark.
If the doctor, if yourgastroenterologist or primary
care doctor is among the rarepractitioners who does know
something about SIBO, they mightsay well, here, take this
prescription for Xifaxan, anantibiotic.
It's expensive, it's got sideeffects.
It does work about 55 to 60% ofthe time.
It's not foolproof.
It can help.
There's almost no mention,though, in that conversation
(15:26):
about how you got it, how toprevent recurrences, how to
begin the process of rebuildinga healthy gastrointestinal
microbiome.
All that's just left.
You're left hanging.
What we've been doing instead isrestoring microbes you've lost,
but especially microbialspecies that colonize the small
intestine that's where SIBOoccurs right and have the
(15:50):
capacity to produce what arecalled bacteriocins natural
antibiotics effective in killingthe invading fecal microbial
species of SIBO.
I call that.
We ferment it.
We use my method of prolongedfermentation 36 hours to allow
at least the bacteria to double12 times.
(16:11):
Bacteria don't have sex right,they just double themselves.
So double 12 times, and wetypically get in the
neighborhood of 300 billionmicrobes for a half cup or 120
milliliters serving, consumehalf cup per day.
That has proven surprisinglyeffective, and because we're
using three microbial speciesthat most people have lost
(16:32):
Lactobacillus rhodori, that youmay be familiar with,
lactobacillus gasseri those twoare great producers, colonize a
small intestine and greatproducers of bactericids,
effective mostly to theclassification of bacteria known
as gram-negatives, which is aspecific type of cell wall they
have.
But also we add bacillussubtilis and that adds the
(16:55):
capacity to kill gram-positivespecies, different kind of
microbes like enterococcus,streptococcus and staphylococcus
.
So that combination, those threelactobacillus rhodori,
lactobacillus gasseri, bacillussubtilis, co-fermented or
individually fermented yourchoice to high counts over 36
hours, that has beenunexpectedly and miraculously
(17:18):
effective in normalizing breathhydrogen gas or, if you're not
measuring hydrogen gas, innormalizing many of the signs
and symptoms of SIBO.
For instance, if you werepreviously intolerant to legumes
or FODMAPs or eggs or whatever,the vast majority of people,
typically after four weeks ofconsumption of the SIBO yogurt,
(17:39):
are now tolerant.
Typically after four weeks ofconsumption of placebo yogurt
are now tolerant.
Or if you have some phenomenonlike a skin rash or some kind of
pain or depression, more oftenthan not you'll feel those
conditions receding when you dothis.
If you don't know what I'mtalking about, please see my
recipe.
There's a recipe in my SuperGut book.
There's also a recipe in mywilliamdavismdcom blog and, of
(18:00):
course, my membership website,drdavisinfinitehealthcom, where
you can join conversations.
We talk about these kinds ofthings, but the key here is to
understand what we're doing isrestoring beneficial keystone
microbes that colonize the smallintestine and produce
bactericides, and you can dothis from the comfort of your
(18:21):
own kitchen.
Popular Podcasts
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
The Breakfast Club
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy And Charlamagne Tha God!
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.