# question appendix



## booradley (Jan 17, 2008)

Have had sibo for 8 years. I know it is that because if I take rifaximin it is gone in 24 hrs. but it always returns in 3 wks almost to the day. The only other remedy that has helped me the scd diet. It is quiet difficult but it does work. My question is does any other sibo's out there not have their appendix. Scientist are leaning toward the theory that the appendix holds the resivoir of good bacteria. I had mine removed 25 years ago.


----------



## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

One thing to remember is SIBO is not "bad bacteria". They find the same perfectly normal bacteria you find in all the places they are supposed to live just in the wrong place.Small intestines should be relatively free of all bacteria, good, bad, or indifferent. When you get too many in there of any kind it can be a problem. Now some of the probiotics do seem to help keep the populations fairly low as they can increase the time between antibiotic clean outs. I'm not sure how many of them hang out in even a healthy person's appendix as they tend to be high in concentration only in people that are consuming them regularly. They tend to be transient residents rather than permanent ones.Now without an appendix you may be more likely to repopulate from the environment whenever you need to, but all the bacteria in the appendix you store up originally came from the environment to start with.


----------

