The fecalization of America

I’ve been lately discussing the issue of small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, or SIBO, a situation in which bowel microorganisms (especially of the undesirable Enterobacteriaceae variety such as E. coli and Shigella) ascend up from the colon and colonize the ileum, jejunum, duodenum, and stomach. This has numerous health implications that are only beginning to be appreciated: irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), fibromyalgia, psoriasis and other skin rashes, restless leg syndrome, diverticular disease, heightened body-wide inflammation, increased risk for colon cancer—SIBO is either synonymous with these conditions or at least a major contributor. I was discussing these issues with two radiologist friends recently who told me that, when they review CT scans, they have been witnessing a dramatic increase in a finding called fecalization. Feces retained in the colon has a characteristic appearance on CT scans (with oral contrast agent given) and it should only appear in the colon. But they have been seeing an increasing number of people with fecalization appearing in the small intestine where it should not be seen. Small intestinal fecalization has a limited number of causes, such as small bowel obstruction, which is an emergency, exquisitely painful, and life-threatening. But the majority of these people in which fecalization is being observed are young (twenties and thirties) and are not acutely ill, but have chronic abdominal complaints such as urgency, diarrhea, an...
Source: Wheat Belly Blog - Category: Cardiology Authors: Tags: News & Updates bowel flora dysbiosis Inflammation microbiota prebiotic probiotic sibo small intestinal bacterial overgrowth undoctored wheat belly Source Type: blogs