Hydrogen Breath Tests

[nhagerty74]

How do I find a physician that performs Breath Tests to check for SIBO and Fructose Intolerance?  My primary care doctor doesn't do it and I asked a couple of local gastro doctors and they said they don't either.  I've seen a couple of websites that sell test kits to use at home and mail in to a lab for results.  Would that be worth trying?  

I want to rule these things out as possible causes for constant bloating/gas/constipation.  I've had a colonoscopy, which was normal.  I do have gastritis, which was diagnosed via endoscopy.  I've had it for a couple of years and we have no idea what causes it and no medicine has ever helped it.  I basically just live with it because the doctors gave up trying to find a cause for it.  I've been tested via biopsies for celiac and h. pylori and was negative.  I've eliminated dairy/gluten from my diet for about a month now with no success.  My gallbladder function tested normal.  I had an abdominal CT Scan which didn't show any abnormalities.  I have endometriosis, but don't know if it can cause digestive problems.  I would really like to have the breath testing done just to rule those things out.

[nhagerty74]

Thank you for the advice, I appreciate it. Hopefully I'll figure out what's causing this...it's extremely frustrating as I'm sure you know.  The doctor I was seeing basically gave up so I did too, but I can't take it anymore.

[Matthew007]

hey nhagerty74!

Sorry you're suffering, I'm fructose intolerant myself (and gluten) and it took many years trying to figure that out, and many times I wish I was a celiac... they have an easier diet than us fructose intolerant people.  I suspected fructose intolerance myself and when I asked my GI specialist about testing for it (hydrogen breath test) he had no idea where to test for that >:P

I ended up calling local hospitals out of the blue and got the run around.. nobody here in Utah had one but I did run into a website that said the University of Utah had one...but by then I had figured it out (stupid..such a simple test and nobody has one...)

anyway long story short I decided to figure it out myself instead of paying for a test that nobody had.. (worthless doctors/GI's...grrr..)

you can go on a fructose free diet/gluten free diet..it's not fun but that's what I eat 24/7.  The information online about fructose intolerance is junk.. it's way more limiting than what celiac's go through.  So for 4+ days.. I'd recommend a week if you can handle it...I would eat the following.

Get a gluten free toothpaste, you can google that.. here some things you can eat..just in case...

Eggs/scrambled, I do one egg yolk and 3 white's.. 70% RDA cholesterol in one egg so no need to go overboard on eggs ..for breakfast on canola oil (not palm or coconut, or even olive.. ), white rice (not brown) spinach.. lots of spinach, generally I can do leafy veggies but starting out I would just get a tub of baby spinach and start there...any protein you can find so chicken/fish/pork whatever...quinoa.. white potatoes (not red or any other kind)..

zero fruits with exception of lemon's and limes, so other ingredients like spices and such (onions and garlic are nono..), nut's are a nono with expeption of sesame seeds/sunflower seeds but those are super high in fat and starting out I wouldn't do it...

if you're dying for fatty greasy foods, then you can do french fries and lay's potato chips, I do ok with spicy mustard and yellow mustard BUT I wouldn't try that until after you try the above...if you're having IBS issues like me, then you can trial and error with psyllium husk and lots of water...what worked for me on IBS-C was soaking ground up flaxseed overnight in water and drinking that.. start sloooww...has omega 3 fatty acids in that though...


That's a pretty strict diet but that's what I did to figure out my fructose/gluten intolerance.. about a week into just eating nothing but eggs and spinach I drank a soda or did trial and error with dairy...swiss cheese is a good one to try (high fructose corn syrup) and wow.. yeah I knew I was a FMer....

I'm sure you know that if you *are* celiac... it can take months to feel better :( and I would stop anything acidic/vitamins with iron or vitamins and avoid asprine or pain meds to give your stomach a break...

Good luck!!