After the aftermath of antibiotics (Xifaxan and Neomycin), it seemed only right to try to heal my gut. I was hoping that the anitbiotics, especially since I did two types at once, were going to be the magic bullets that made me feel instantly better. Sadly it was not the case… it was a bit like a battle was being waged in my stomach and the bloating and irregularity actually increased for a bit.
In order to see if there were any clues to what was happening in the darkness of my little gut I looked at stool charts, which is totally gross. Well, at least if you are a girl. My husband probably would have loved it. I could see that I still had an bacterial imbalance and likely killed off my good bacteria.
But after going through a bacterial overgrowth and reading all of the divergent arguments out there on probiotics I was terrified to take any. So I tried Kombucha for the first time in my life. I actually liked it a lot but I kept it to a minimum and didn’t drink it a lot. I did feel pretty good but my gut wasn’t perfect. There is a lot of contradictory stuff out there on Kombucha, too, so I am going to use it very rarely.
So what could I do to heal myself? After searching the SIBO sites early on after my diagnosis, I decided to buy some Digestive Enzymes and L-Glutamine. I’ll get into why I choose these two…
Like many people with SIBO, or what I likely now have – PI (Post-Infectious)-IBS, I have read many blogs, watched many vlogs and listened to many podcasts that have mentioned digestive enzymes. Some are selling their own brand but there really aren’t any people who have nothing to profit on saying which ones would work best during or after a SIBO.
Some even say you should eat clay (or dirt), but there are a lot of people who say that is wrong. Well, I never saw anyone who said that taking digestive enzymes for a limited time. So I looked for a long time until I found one I like and it was all natural. It even said it would help your small intestine digest foods and better absorb nutrients! It’s not cheap but what truly is when it comes to the best stuff to ingest?
I chose S.I. Assist from Body Ecology, and because I didn’t want to have a depence on them I only use digestive enzymes once daily (usually before bed) or only a few times a week when I feel like I need them. They are derived from foods and I really like them.
Then there is L-Glutamine, which I have read heals muscles, tissues and can help heal the lining of the gut. The only caution I had read was to get the daily dosing right or you could wind up constipated. Nobody wants that! I chose a brand that was free of all additives and stuff you should not eat on the SIBO specific diet.
It defintely hasn’t hurt me, so I am going to finish the bottle and see where I go from there. I will probably do the same with the digestive enzymes. Again, this is my two cents (or tweny two cents – sorry it is a bit long) on these “healers.” Make sure you do what is right for YOU!
Best of luck and digestion to all! 🙂
Hi,
I like to know how did you take l-glutamine and the enzymes? For example did you take the L-glutamine first? If so, how did you wait before taking the digestive enzymes?
I take l-glutamine on an empty stomach. Usually before breakfast. Right now I am taking digestive enzymes after breakfast and dinner. I have not found that they conflict with each other. Hope that helps.