The Root Cause Medicine Podcast is created by Rupa Health, the best way to order, track & get results from 30+ lab companies in one place. In today’s episode, Dr. Carrie Jones is joined by Craig Strasnick, President and CEO of Commonwealth Diagnostics International. They discuss small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, known as SIBO, and intestinal methanogen overgrowth, known as IMO, and how the diagnostic side of GI disturbances provides important data that helps guide research and the development of therapies to help patients find relief. Key Takeaways: What Is SIBO? Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth plays an enormous role in the categorization and diagnosis of irritable bowel syndrome patients. Irritable bowel syndrome is the world's most common gastrointestinal disorder, which includes symptoms like diarrhea, constipation, bloating, nausea, abdominal pain, or dyspepsia. It is estimated that greater than 84% of total IBS patients suffer from SIBO, which represents an excess of bacteria in the small intestine. What Is IMO? Intestinal Methane Overgrowth represents an overgrowth of methane-producing archaea in the small and large intestines. Methane has always been an important component of the breath testing protocol to quantify GI disturbances or SIBO. The distinction between methane and hydrogen is how each trace gas correlates to the symptom set of each individual patient case. Hydrogen is associated with faster motility and diarrhea, whereas methane has been most closely correlated to abdominal distension, bloating, and constipation. Treatment Options for GI Disturbances. There are a host of various therapeutic interventions, dietary modifications, or interventions like the FODMAP or specific carbohydrate diet, which rely on low fermentable and sugar foods, and probiotics and prebiotics. As the President and CEO of CDI, Craig collaborates with international academics and industry leaders to improve current gastroenterological practices. He graduated from Northeastern University with a degree in Business Administration and founded CDI in 2015 after securing the acquisition of Commonwealth Laboratories. In 2021, Forbes named Craig Strasnick and Commonwealth Diagnostics International to the Forbes Next 1000. Craig is also a Board Member of Functional Gut Diagnostics, GI Logic, and My Total Health.

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