Doctors Admitting Effectivity Of Herbal Antibiotics To Relieve SIBO

Several doctors are coming forward admitting, herbal antibiotics, sourced from herbs, reduce inflammation and kill bacteria. One study showed the herbal antibiotics were more effective than two rounds of prescription antibiotics. However, herbal antibiotics can still cause negative side effects in some clients. Herbal antibiotics are frequently used by holistic practitioners when treating SIBO, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth.

Johns Hopkins University and Dr. Mullins, along with his team, studied 252 patients who tested positive for SIBO and found the protocol of herbal antibiotics on 37 of the patients worked a little bit better than prescription antibiotics. The team reported, “Herbal therapies are at least as effective as rifaximin for resolution of SIBO by LBT (breath test). Herbals also appear to be as effective as triple antibiotic therapy for SIBO rescue therapy for rifaximin non-responders.”

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They reported, “SIBO is becoming an increasingly significant problem in clinical practice as its manifestations can be protean and range from a full-blown enteropathy causing profound malabsorption and malnutrition simulating celiac disease to mild symptoms that overlap with IBS.”

Symptoms asssociated with SIBO are abdominal discomfort, cramping, bloating, flatulence, eructation, diarrhea, increase of symptoms after meals, low B₁₂ levels and abnormal bowel function. The easiest and most accurate test for SIBO is the breath test like this one. 

Other affects of SIBO are rosacea, restless legs syndrome, arthralgias (joint pain), anemia, interstitial cystitis (painful bladder issues), chronic prostatitis (chronic pain and urinary issues) and polyneuropathy (nerve damage outside the brain or spinal cord). Liver issues are also associated with SIBO, remarkably when alcohol is not a factor. The eventual result of alcoholic liver disease, non-alcoholic fatty liver and obesity ensue. 

Often times if the patient has irritable bowel disorder, SIBO is consider to be the contributing factor.

Test subjects were given the option of their treatment protocol. Some chose the antibiotic prescription of two 200 mg rifaximin tablets three times daily. Others chose the herbal antibiotics Dysbiocide and FC Cidal from Biotics Research Laboratories 2 capsules twice a day for 4 consecutive weeks. Others chose the herbal antibiotics Candibactin-AR and Candibactin-BR by Metagenics, Inc. also with the dosage of 2 capsules twice a day for 4 consecutive weeks. 

At the end of the dosage period a follow up breath test was administered.

The 41 patients who did not respond to the prescription antibiotics after the treatment were given either a triple antibiotic by prescription or the herbal antibiotics. Of the 10 patients given the triple antibiotic treatment, 4 still had SIBO on their post treatment breath test. 

The study found, “The present study demonstrates that herbal therapy may be as effective as antibiotic therapy in the treatment of SIBO, as indirectly measured by normalization of the lactulose breath test abnormalities.”

Other physicians are turning towards herbal or natural remedies and seeing results. “My colleagues and I prefer to use single herbs and use two to three a day.” says Allison Siebecker, ND, LAc and SIBO specialist said on may 14, 2015.

Siebecker recommends using 5,000 mg/day of burberine in the form of goldenseal, oregano, Biotics ADP, emulsified, 2 pills twice a day, allimed, the highest form of allicin which is the antibacterial ingredient in garlic. She uses 3-6 pills a day. Siebecker says, “Allicin is what we need to use for methane. When you have methane you need allicin and you can use it with burberine or maybe oregano. We find it very effective.” Lastly, she recommends neem, 3-6 a day.

Die off often occurs more with herbal antibiotics than with prescription antibiotics. Click here to learn more.

Using these products should be done with a qualified practitioner.

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*Nourishing Plot is written by Becky Plotner, ND, traditional naturopath, GAPS who sees clients in Rossville, Georgia. Since her son was delivered from the effects of autism (Asperger’s syndrome), ADHD, bipolar disorder/manic depression, hypoglycemia and dyslexia through food she continued her education specializing in Leaky Gut and parasitology through Duke University, finishing with distinction. This is not a news article published by a paper trying to make money. This blog is put out by a mom who sees first hand the effects of nourishing food vs food-ish items. No company pays her for writing these blogs, she considers this a form of missionary work. It is her desire to scream it from the rooftops so that others don’t suffer from the damaging effect of today’s “food”.