Hello, Since this was brought up in class last night, I wanted to know more about the anti-bacterial herbs and how they are used. In recent times I heard about (and even tried on myself) an herbal blend for the treatment of SIBO as an "herbal antibiotic". I was very skeptical that it would give me the results of an antibiotic but felt it was worth a try in an effort not to overuse antibiotics since SIBO is known to reoccur even after treatment. The blend is Dysbiocide (Dill, Stemona, Wormwood, Java Brucea, Chinese Pulsatilla, Jamaica Quassia, Hedyotis, Cutch tree, Yarrow) and FC Cidal (French Tarragon, Indian Tinospora, Horsetail, Thyme, Pau D' Arco, Stinging Nettle extract, Olive leaf) taken in a dose of 2 capsules, 3x a day for 6-8 weeks. I do think it helped so my question is, are these herbs ones that are regularly used with a gastric condition such as SIBO? If not, which ones are a better option? and can these or others be used as a preventative as well as treatment? Thank you, Jen Smithem

The products you mention are a bit of what is called “garbage can pharmacy”, throw everything you can think of in a formula and hope it works. Some the the herbs are used for GI infections, while others like Stinging Nettle are not. If it helped great, as an herbalist I treat people not diseases, so there is no standard formula for SIBO, there are some herbs I do tend to use such as Andrographis, Thyme, Goldenseal, Usnea, Myrrh, Isatis, Da Huang/Rhubarb, Houttuynia, Huang Qin, etc. Which ones I use and what other herbs will be added to the individual formula depends on the specifics of the case - symptom picture (diarrhea, gas, bloating, heat or cold pattern, type of pain….. In class over time we will discuss these issues and how to individualize treatment for the best results.