Our body's microbiome is a popular topic these days. The health of all the trillions of microbes that live in our body has a great impact on our overall health.  Dysbiosis is one term we all need to know. Dysbiosis is generally an imbalance of intestinal bacteria. 

The most common cause of dysbiosis is the use of antibiotics, which kill the good bacteria along with the bad, creating an environment where bad bacteria or yeast can overgrow and cause disease conditions.  Fermentation dysbiosis is a specific type of condition that is associated with bloating, constipation, diarrhea, fatigue, and gas.  A person with this condition usually has trouble digesting carbohydrates.

A person with fermentation dysbiosis is not able to properly digest carbohydrates or foods with high sugar content.  As a result, these carbs and sugars start fermenting in the stomach and intestine and becomes food for not just the good bacteria, but also the bad bacteria and yeast.  The bad bacteria and yeast then grow producing hydrogen and carbon dioxide.  The overgrowth of these bad bacteria and yeast and their byproducts damages the villi and microvilli of the intestine causing increased permeability of the intestine and significantly reducing its ability to absorb nutrients and fluids.  This creates the dysbiosis condition in the colon.  

The major contributing factor with fermentation dysbiosis is defective digestion of carbohydrates coupled with a person that eats a high carbohydrate diet.  The symptoms that are experienced are bloating, constipation, diarrhea, fatigue, and gas.    If there is yeast overgrowth, usually Candida albicans is the issue and similar symptoms will occur due to the toxins produced by the yeast.

If someone has been diagnosed with fermentation dysbiosis, there are some treatments that may help relieve symptoms and promote healing of the colon.  The first suggestion is to cut back greatly on the consumption of carbohydrates.  This would significantly reduce the food source that has fueled the growth of the bad bacteria and yeast.  The second suggestion is to take a probiotic supplement.  Probiotic supplements contain good bacteria that help keep the bad bacteria in check and keep the colon healthy.  A third suggestion is to take a good quality grapefruit seed extract.  This is said to be effective on killing Candida yeast.  People on certain medications, though, should not take this since it interferes with the absorption of the drugs.  There is also some controversy over some grapefruit seed extracts that may be contaminated with toxic chemicals like Triclosan, Benzelthonium Chloride, or Methyl Paraben.  Great care should be taken in choosing a safe and effective product.