Gut Health — IBS & SIBO

Bloating, pain, and digestive chaos that won’t resolve?

Functional medicine uncovers the microbial imbalances, hidden infections, and inflammatory triggers behind your gut symptoms — so you can eat, digest, and live without fear.

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Sound Familiar?

Signs your gut needs a deeper investigation

If bloating, pain, or unpredictable bowel habits have become your normal — and basic tests haven’t found anything — these patterns point to something standard care isn’t looking for.

Persistent bloating & distension

Your stomach inflates after eating — sometimes regardless of what you eat. By evening you look months pregnant.

Alternating constipation & diarrhoea

Your bowel habits are unpredictable. You cycle between days of nothing and sudden urgency with no clear trigger.

Food intolerances multiplying

The list of foods you can’t tolerate keeps growing. You’re cutting out more and more but symptoms persist.

Fatigue after meals

Eating wipes you out. Post-meal brain fog, heaviness, and the need to lie down — even after small meals.

Reflux & upper gut discomfort

Burning, nausea, or a feeling of food sitting in your stomach for hours. Antacids help temporarily but the problem returns.

Skin reactions & mood changes

Eczema flares, unexplained rashes, anxiety, or low mood that worsens with gut symptoms — the gut-skin-brain axis in action.

The Gap in Standard Care

Why your Specialist’s tests came back “normal”

Standard gastroenterology checks for structural problems — ulcers, coeliac, IBD. If those are clear, you’re told it’s “just IBS” and handed dietary advice.

Functional medicine investigates the microbial ecosystem, digestive capacity, and immune activation that conventional testing wasn’t designed to assess.

Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) — bacteria in the wrong place fermenting food and causing bloating
Parasitic or fungal overgrowth — hidden infections that standard stool tests miss entirely
Leaky gut / intestinal permeability — a damaged gut lining driving food reactions and systemic inflammation
Enzyme and acid insufficiency — poor digestive capacity leaving food partially broken down
Dysbiosis patterns — imbalanced microbiome communities disrupting motility, immunity, and mood

“Seeing Rohan for help with my gut has been a great experience. He is warm, caring and compassionate and I love that he takes into account the entire being. Does not push products unnecessarily and is realistic with treatment plans.”

— Keli, Adelaide

Understanding Your Diagnosis

What’s the Difference Between IBS and SIBO?

IBS and SIBO produce nearly identical symptoms — bloating, abdominal pain, altered bowel habits — which is why they’re so commonly confused. The critical difference is cause: IBS is a functional disorder of gut motility and sensitivity, while SIBO is a structural problem caused by bacterial overgrowth in the small intestine. SIBO can drive IBS symptoms, which means an IBS diagnosis doesn’t rule SIBO out.

Comparison table: Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) vs Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO)
Feature	IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome)	SIBO (Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth)
Cause	Functional disorder — altered gut motility, visceral hypersensitivity, gut-brain axis dysregulation	Bacterial overgrowth in the small intestine, often linked to impaired migrating motor complex (MMC)
Diagnosis	Symptom-based (Rome IV criteria); no confirmatory test required	Lactulose or glucose hydrogen/methane breath test; small intestine aspirate (gold standard, rarely used)
Bloating pattern	Variable — may occur throughout the day or after meals	Often appears within 60–90 minutes of eating as fermentation occurs in the small bowel
Bowel changes	Mixed constipation and diarrhoea, or predominantly one type	Hydrogen-dominant SIBO tends toward diarrhoea; methane-dominant (IMO) tends toward constipation
Nutrient absorption	Generally unaffected	May impair absorption of B12, fat-soluble vitamins, and iron due to bacterial interference
Treatment	Low-FODMAP diet, gut-brain therapies, motility support, stress management	Antimicrobials (pharmaceutical or herbal), elemental diet, followed by motility support to prevent recurrence
Can they coexist?	Yes — SIBO is found in up to 78% of people with an IBS diagnosis. Treating SIBO may resolve IBS symptoms that haven’t responded to dietary changes alone.

What this means for you

If you’ve been managing IBS for years without lasting relief, an untreated SIBO component may be the missing piece. Rohan assesses both patterns together using comprehensive microbiome mapping — including the Microba Gut Microbiome Explorer and organic acid testing — to identify what’s actually driving your symptoms rather than treating the picture alone.

The Process

A structured path from confusion to clarity

No guesswork. Every step is guided by testing, clinical experience, and a deep understanding of how your body’s systems interconnect.

Map Your Pattern

A comprehensive 90-minute initial consultation to understand your full history, symptoms, lifestyle, and what’s been missed. We identify the patterns that matter.

Test What Matters

In-depth pathology interpretation that catches what others miss — plus targeted functional testing when deeper answers are needed.

Build Your Plan

A personalised treatment protocol targeting root causes — nutritional support, gut restoration, nervous system regulation, and lifestyle recalibration.

Video coming soon

From Rohan

Understanding gut health from a functional perspective

In this short video, Rohan explains why IBS is a description, not a diagnosis — and how functional testing reveals the specific microbial, enzymatic, and inflammatory drivers behind your symptoms.

If you’ve been living on a restricted diet and still suffering, this is the context you need.

Functional Testing

What we investigate

The specific tests and pathways we examine to uncover the root causes of your digestive dysfunction.

Comprehensive Stool Analysis

DNA-based mapping of bacteria, parasites, candida, digestive enzymes, immune markers, and gut inflammation.

Advanced Blood Chemistry

Functional ranges for iron, B12, zinc, vitamin D, and inflammatory markers often depleted by gut dysfunction.

Intestinal Permeability Markers

Zonulin and other markers assessing gut barrier integrity — the gateway to systemic inflammation.

Food Sensitivity Panels

IgG and IgA reactivity testing to identify immune-mediated food triggers beyond standard allergy tests.

SIBO Breath Testing

Lactulose or glucose breath test measuring hydrogen and methane to confirm small intestinal bacterial overgrowth.

Organic Acid Profile

Reveals bacterial and yeast metabolites, mitochondrial function, and nutrient status affecting gut repair.

Common Questions

Gut Health — Frequently Asked Questions

What’s the difference between IBS and SIBO?

IBS is a label your doctor gives when you have ongoing gut symptoms — bloating, pain, unpredictable bowels — but nothing abnormal shows on standard tests. SIBO is an actual finding: too much bacteria in the small intestine, which is directly causing those symptoms. Research shows SIBO is present in up to 60–80% of IBS cases. Knowing the difference matters because IBS has no specific treatment, while SIBO does.

Why did my GP’s tests come back normal when I clearly have symptoms?

Standard tests are designed to rule out serious disease — coeliac, IBD, bowel cancer. They’re not designed to pick up functional problems like bacterial overgrowth, low stomach acid, or poor gut motility. If your results came back clear, that’s actually important — it means nothing dangerous was missed. But it doesn’t mean your gut is working well. That’s where functional testing fills the gap.

How is gut health properly investigated?

The most comprehensive picture comes from a detailed stool analysis. We use the Ciobiome Complete Stool Test — a professional-grade microbiome analysis that assesses bacterial balance, digestive function, inflammation markers, and intestinal permeability. It goes far beyond what a standard stool test checks, giving us a precise map of what’s actually happening in your gut. You can order it directly from our store before your consultation, or we can arrange it at your first appointment.

Can stress really cause gut problems, or is that just a saying?

It’s very real — and the mechanism is well understood. Your gut has its own nervous system, and it communicates directly with your brain via the vagus nerve. When you’re chronically stressed, cortisol disrupts gut motility, increases intestinal permeability, and shifts your bacterial balance. This is why stress reliably makes IBS worse — and why we always address stress physiology as part of a gut treatment plan, not just diet.

How long before I start seeing results?

Most people notice meaningful improvement within 4–8 weeks of starting a targeted protocol. More complex cases — long-standing dysbiosis or multiple overlapping issues — can take 4–6 months for full resolution. Your first consultation includes a realistic timeline based on what we actually find.

Do I need a GP referral to see you?

No referral needed — you can book directly online. If you have existing test results or specialist letters, bring them along; they’re always useful context. Telehealth is available if you’re not in Adelaide. Have a look at the Services & Fees page for consultation options and pricing.

Patient Experience

“Everything you need. Solved my problems after multiple doctors and gastroenterologists could not.”

— Kate, Adelaide

Ready to find answers?

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