Researchers conclude that fecal profiling of volatile organic compounds (VOC’s) may provide a low cost, non-invasive tool to predict the responses of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) patients to probiotics and diets low in fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols (FODMAP’s). Modeling baseline fecal VOC’s, and using key features of VOC profiles, correctly predicted response to
Symptoms meeting the Rome IV criteria for functional dyspepsia were found in 12% of US adults and 8% of people in the UK and Canada, researchers reported in The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology. The most common subtypes were postprandial distress syndrome, epigastric pain syndrome and both syndromes together. These individuals had more-impaired health and used more
The FDA sent letters to manufacturers of loperamide, a longstanding and commonly used treatment for diarrhea, asking them to change the size of the drug’s packaging to limit the amount of opioid drugs in the package. The agency aims to discontinue the large bottles in which loperamide is often sold to deter its abuse. See
A nationwide study of Veterans Health Administration patients found a high percentage with functional abdominal pain received a prescription for an opioid medication during a 1-year period. The risks of opioid overuse has reached epidemic proportions and has received national attention. Compared with patients who had a structural GI disorder such as inflammatory bowel disease
Consuming 2 to 3 cups of homemade yogurt daily led to a remission of IBS in 89% of participants in a study at two medical centers in eastern Kentucky presented at the World Congress of Gastroenterology at ACG2017. Although some study designs were noted, the experiment showed promise. See the review on Medscape here.
A low FODMAP diet was more effective at improving symptoms than general dietary advice (GDA) in a study published in the Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology. Gastrointestinal symptoms , stool frequency, and consistency improved after six weeks in the FODMAP group. However, both groups experienced reductions in symptom severity, abdominal pain, distension, consistency and frequency.
A study found 40% of irritable bowel syndrome patients treated with individual hypnotherapy, and 34% in group hypnotherapy, reported sufficient relief of discomfort and pain after three months, compared with 17% of those who received education and supportive care, researchers reported at United European Gastroenterology Week 2017. A second study presented at the conference showed
An analysis of eight studies found continuous endurance exercise, such as running or cycling, for more than two hours may lead to exercise-induced gastrointestinal syndrome, which includes gut injury and impaired gut function, researchers wrote in the journal Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics. Prolonged vigorous exercise can cause a stress response that shuts down gut function,
Are home gut microbiome test kits reliable?
- For Medical Professionals
- General GI
- Inflammatory Bowel Disease
- Irritable Bowel Syndrome
- Microbiome
- Nutrition
Experts question value of at-home gut microbiome test kits The idea that different types of bacteria in the human gut play a role in health and disease is driving a new trend in consumer-oriented health-care kits. Startups are offering new services to analyze the complex community of microörganisms that live in the digestive tract—called the
Rob Knight gives an outstanding overview of how the microbiome affects our health and much, much more in this timely summary.
