# azithromycin?



## tsola (Jan 3, 2008)

some background: I've had IBS-related issues for years... nothing debilitating, but it's just never been "right" (at least through most of my 20's). I essentially cut out dairy (except 'hard' cheeses and yogurt which seem to be ok) and other than my occasional binge-drinking (I know, I know) on the weekends, my lifestyle is pretty damn healthy. Regular exercise, good sleep, lots of fresh fruit & veggies, lots of water, good supplements, and regularly used probiotics (_Acidophilus, l. casei immunitas_, etc. For the last couple of years I've at least been fairly regular, solid stools, no pain per se - all in all not bad when contrasted with about 3 years of hell during my mid-20's.The only problem has been vicious, constant gas. ALL the time. There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason for it; it doesn't seem to really be affected by what or when I eat. I'd gotten to the point where I figured I would just live with it indefinitely. After all, it could be - and had been - so much worse. Well, last week I took a one-time dose of Azithromycin (2 500 mg pills, I think). I usually shun antibiotics like the plague, but this was pretty much unavoidable. And like I figured, I ended up having a pretty nasty, day-long bout with diarrhea. I took it easy the next day and drank a couple of my _l. casei immunitas_ drinks, dropped a couple of acidophilus capsules after my meals, and went on my merry way. The D cleared up, I felt better and assumed things would go by to normal. They more or less did, except for the constant, potent, mind-numbingly frequent gas has all but stopped!! It's been a week now and I can count on one hand how many times I've passed small, essentially odorless, amounts of gas. Pretty freakin' amazing. To me, anyway...So can anybody shed any light or have similar experiences? I'm presently on cloud 9, and am hoping against hope it doesn't revert back to cloud nasty...


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## Daninperth (Jan 29, 2008)

Yes i've had similar experiences while on broad spectrum antibiotics. Anything that is broad spectrum and is bactericidal/static for e. coli....e.g Flouroquinolones, azythromycin (but not older macrolides with little activity against e. coli) or amoxicillin/clavulanate.Its the fast way to rid the problem and probiotics seem helpful in the relatively "sterile" environment left after the antibiotic wipes out the overgrowth. Some people have to take rotated courses of antibiotics continuously to control the problem. There is evidence that he problem is either part of or the cause of syndromes which can damage mucosal brush-border integrity and thus intestinal health, over time.Dan


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