Flagyl is sometimes prescribed for excessive gas and diarrhea. It is an antibiotics that works well on certain bacteria that accumulates in the GI tract and contributes to the gas and the bloating. 

These bad bacteria flourish when patients consume significant and excessive fiber and carbohydrates (sugars, salad, pasta etc.) The FIRST line of defense against flatulence, bloating, and diarrhea should be eleminating the culprits in the diet.  This point can not be stressed enough.   Adding a daily dose of yogurt may improve symptoms due to yogurts probiotic benefits. To be beneficial, Yogurt should contain live bacteria cultures, not contain artificial sweeteners or have a high sugar content.

Artificial sweetness also area source of the excessive gas and should be avoided.

The Flagyl eliminates and reduces the bad bacteria. Along with a Probiotic and healthy dietary choices Flagyl can help to significantly improved or eliminate those symptoms of gas and diarrhea.

Before Flagyl is prescribed, it is important that the diet is critically examined to make sure that the carbohydrates and the fiber as source of gas and bloating is minimized or eliminated. Excessive use of medications that may be needed for other infections should be avoided.

Chronic diarrhea should be evaluated to rule out GI infection with C. diff bacteria or other bacteria or parasite.

 

Additional Information on C. Diff (Clostridium Difficile)  and probiotics.

Not all proteins are created equally. The protein that we digest serves as the source of the essential amino acids, (the building blocks which make up a protein). The essential amino acids can not be made in out body. Protein sources can be animal or plant based.  We’ve written a in-depth explanation of protein sources in this previous blog: Protein Optimization

The proteins can also be decided into two categories:

1-High quality  or Complete proteins

Complete proteins contain all the indispensable amino acids that we need. Animal based proteins for the most part are complete proteins. These include cheese, mean, fish, mild, yogurt, egg and poetry.

 

2-Low quality or Incomplete proteins

Incomplete protein are mostly plant based proteins. In most cases, the incomplete proteins either lack or have insufficient about of the one or a number of amino acids to be able to satisfy our nutritional requirements.

This is why we general recommend animal based proteins.

Following weight loss surgery there are some guidelines that can be helpful in our previous blog: Importance of Protein.

There is also much discussion on whey protein. There is a brief and good explanation on this subject here.

Recipes for protein shakes.

 

 

The small intestine is a long tubular organ that is approximately 460-1000cm in adults. It is divided into three sections, Duodenum, Jejunum, and Ileum. The surface area is greater than one might think due to the folds, villi, and microvilli. The surface area is approximately 30 square meters. Most of human digestion and absorption takes place within these three sections of small intestine.

The diagram of normal anatomy absorption in the small intestine is pictured to the right.  It is color coded based on the area of the digestive tract the absorption takes place. You may also view here: master-normal-anatomy-with-text

Overview

Length: 22 ft. (6.7 m)

Width: 1 inch

pH: neutral or slightly alkaline (5-7)

• Steps:
  1. Neutralization in stomach, where enzymes act to breakdown food
  2. Digestion through greater breakdown with help of bile and pancreatic juices
  3. Absorption through assimilation of digested food, vitamins, and salts. Nutrients are taken into the bloodstream via specialized epithelial cells to the liver through the hepatic portal vein.

Duodenum

Length: 1 ft. (0.30 m)

pH~ 5

• Main site of breakdown
• C shaped turn with 4 parts: superior, descending, inferior, ascending
• Mixes food (now in form of chyme) with bile and other digestive juices
• Passes chyme through duodenojejunal flexure which contains suspensory muscle to widen the duodenal angle and increase movement.

Jejunum

Length: 8.2 ft. (2.5 m)

pH~ 6

• Coiled, vascular tube that contains a thick intestinal wall
• The wall contains epithelial projections called intestinal villi
  • Smaller projections in the villi, called microvilli work to:

1. project specialized transport cells called enterocytes
2. increase surface area
3. allow more absorption

Ileum

Length: 11.5 ft. (3.5 m)

pH~ 7

• Less vascularized and thinner intestinal wall
• Absorbs nutrients that preceding sections of the gut did not
  • particularly works with vitamin B12 and bile salt absorption
• Connects to the colon through the ileocecal valve for further breakdown.

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References:

1. Campbell NA, Reece JB, Mitchell LG. Biology. 5th ed. Benjamin-Cummings Pub Co. 1999-2002; 802-805.
2. Ovesen L, Bendtsen F, Tage-Jensen U, Pedersen NT, Gram BR, Rube SJ. Intraluminal pH in the stomach, duodenum, and proximal jejunum in normal subjects and patients with exocrine pancreatic insufficiency. Gastroenterology. 1986; 90(4): 958-62.
3. Stevens C. E., and Hume, I. D. 1995.Comparative Physiology of the Vertebrate Digestive System. 2nd ed. New York: Cambridge University Press.
4. Schmidler C. Anatomy and Function of the Digestive System. Healthpages.org. 2016.