# Marijuana and Motility (SIBO)



## gravitas (Jul 30, 2009)

I'm being treated for SIBO (Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth) by my gastroenterologist.He did a hydrogen breath test and determined by the results that I have SIBO. They had me drink some type of fluid with a certain substance in it (lactose?) and blow into a tube, three times 30 minutes apart. He says the erratic up-and-down results from the digital meter during the test indicate SIBO.He says that SIBO can be caused by constipation, and constipation can be caused by marijuana use. He says that my constant (daily) use of marijuana needs to stop in order to prevent recurrence of SIBO after his treatment. (He says that bowel motility is slowed down by the marijuana, even if you aren't constipated per se the bowels are moving slower and this can cause the bacteria to migrate to the lower intestine.) I wasn't really constipated every day, in fact I was having regular bowel movements but loose stools and IBS-like symptoms, probably due to the SIBO. In fact, the worst constipation I've had recently was during Atkins & South Beach diets in the last few years. He says it's a known issue for many pot smokers to get SIBO. I've stopped smoking for now and he says I shouldn't smoke it ever again in the future.When I smoke(d) pot, I generally wouldn't be able to take a dump directly afterward, or if I did it would come out more slowly (or take longer to come out). So he could be right on about bowel motility. I would generally wait until after a nice big movement before I would get high. But apparently he's saying that this approach isn't good enough either because the intestinal muscles are moving more slowly regardless of when you smoke, and this somehow (?) causes bacteria to migrate to the lower intestine.He has prescribed Ofloxacin for 10 days to kill the lower intestinal bacteria. I read about some very serious side effects (e.g. muscle rupture, cardiac toxicity) but decided to go ahead with his prescription.My questions for this forum are:1. Is it true that marijuana can cause SIBO? Or is he just old-fashioned and trying to scare me into conforming with society?2. If it's constipation that causes SIBO, are the Atkins/South Beach diets more likely to have been the cause than weed? I was often very constipated on those diets.3. Regardless of pot, is there anything about the above diagnosis/treatment that should concern me, or is he following good practices as far as everyone here knows?Thanks!


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

I found a review article that says this


> The inhibitory effects of cannabinoid receptor agonists on gastric emptying and intestinal transit are mediated to some extent by CB1 receptors in the brain as well as by enteric CB1 receptors. Gastric acid secretion is also inhibited in response to CB1 receptor activation, although the detailed underlying mechanism has yet to be elucidated.


Which sounds like it tends to slow things down and another article said it has been used to treat diarrhea in some traditions which tends to be a slow down rather than speed up sort of thing.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1135891...ogdbfrom=pubmedIn any case there certainly are receptors for cannabis compounds in the gut so it likely will have some effect.


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## Borrellifan (May 5, 2009)

It does indeed slow down gut motillity. I know this because when my IBS-D is extremly bad one of the only things that helps is smoking marijuana. I have no-clue as to whether it has anything to do with SIBO but it could indeed have a constipating effect.


Kathleen M. said:


> I found a review article that says thisWhich sounds like it tends to slow things down and another article said it has been used to treat diarrhea in some traditions which tends to be a slow down rather than speed up sort of thing.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1135891...ogdbfrom=pubmedIn any case there certainly are receptors for cannabis compounds in the gut so it likely will have some effect.


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## Danevans (Dec 23, 2008)

I'm in the process of being diagnosed with SIBO. My GI doc thinks I have it. I smoked for a few years in college and now it's an every day thing. This thread makes me interested b/c I'm wondering if years of smoking pot has slowed my intestinal motility. I was also using pain killers recreationally and I wonder if this could be another contributing factor to my SIBO.I'd really like to see more on this and I guess I need to quit pot for a few months and see what happens... Problem is I've lost a solid 10 lbs since last October (woke up one morning and it all started) and I'm trying to gain it back. Pot helps with my appetite and I've grown somewhat dependent on it when it comes to eating.Anyone know how to speed intestinal motility up a little bit? Any help appreciated.


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## margiepalmer11 (5 mo ago)

gravitas said:


> I'm being treated for SIBO (Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth) by my gastroenterologist.He did a hydrogen breath test and determined by the results that I have SIBO. They had me drink some type of fluid with a certain substance in it (lactose?) and blow into a tube, three times 30 minutes apart. He says the erratic up-and-down results from the digital meter during the test indicate SIBO.He says that SIBO can be caused by constipation, and constipation can be caused by marijuana use. He says that my constant (daily) use of marijuana needs to stop in order to prevent recurrence of SIBO after his treatment. (He says that bowel motility is slowed down by the marijuana, even if you aren't constipated per se the bowels are moving slower and this can cause the bacteria to migrate to the lower intestine.) I wasn't really constipated every day, in fact I was having regular bowel movements but loose stools and IBS-like symptoms, probably due to the SIBO. In fact, the worst constipation I've had recently was during Atkins & South Beach diets in the last few years. He says it's a known issue for many pot smokers to get SIBO. I've stopped smoking for now and he says I shouldn't smoke it ever again in the future.When I smoke(d) pot, I generally wouldn't be able to take a dump directly afterward, or if I did it would come out more slowly (or take longer to come out). So he could be right on about bowel motility. I would generally wait until after a nice big movement before I would get high. But apparently he's saying that this approach isn't good enough either because the intestinal muscles are moving more slowly regardless of when you smoke, and this somehow (?) causes bacteria to migrate to the lower intestine.He has prescribed Ofloxacin for 10 days to kill the lower intestinal bacteria. I read about some very serious side effects (e.g. muscle rupture, cardiac toxicity) but decided to go ahead with his prescription.My questions for this forum are:1. Is it true that marijuana can cause SIBO? Or is he just old-fashioned and trying to scare me into conforming with society?2. If it's constipation that causes SIBO, are the Atkins/South Beach diets more likely to have been the cause than weed? I was often very constipated on those diets.3. Regardless of pot, is there anything about the above diagnosis/treatment that should concern me, or is he following good practices as far as everyone here knows?Thanks!


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## margiepalmer11 (5 mo ago)

That's not true my friend has SIBO and she said it takes away her stomach pain, joint pain, lifts her mood and gets rid of nausea and headaches and she wouldn't know what to do without it and is a wonderful blessing for people with SIBO!


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## margiepalmer11 (5 mo ago)

Danevans said:


> I'm in the process of being diagnosed with SIBO. My GI doc thinks I have it. I smoked for a few years in college and now it's an every day thing. This thread makes me interested b/c I'm wondering if years of smoking pot has slowed my intestinal motility. I was also using pain killers recreationally and I wonder if this could be another contributing factor to my SIBO.I'd really like to see more on this and I guess I need to quit pot for a few months and see what happens... Problem is I've lost a solid 10 lbs since last October (woke up one morning and it all started) and I'm trying to gain it back. Pot helps with my appetite and I've grown somewhat dependent on it when it comes to eating.Anyone know how to speed intestinal motility up a little bit? Any help appreciated.


Take about 5 magnesium pills every night!


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## HG36189 (4 mo ago)

margiepalmer11 said:


> Take about 5 magnesium pills every night!


Does magnesium help with SIBO?


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## margiepalmer11 (5 mo ago)

margiepalmer11 said:


> Take about 5 magnesium pills every night!


Take 6 of the best digestive enzymes every day because that speeds up digestion and gives SIBO less to eat, and gives you more nutrients because you're absorbing your food better,!!


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## Amanda Malachesky (5 mo ago)

HG36189 said:


> Does magnesium help with SIBO?


Magnesium can help improve constipation, and indirectly help improve SIBO. But by itself is not often enough to address SIBO.


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