A recent study reported better control of bacterial overgrowth of the small intestine (SIBO) with repeated monthly 10-day courses of antibiotics than a single 10-day course of an antibiotic.This is exactly what I have discovered in my approach to control SIBO. They mentioned rifaximin’s (Xifaxan, U.S.) effectiveness against SIBO but did not use it because it was not available in France, where the patients were treated.
I believe the primary reason for frequent relapsing is slow intestinal forward motility, most often due to autonomic nervous system damage. I have found that some patients have such slow motility that they will relapse within 1-2 weeks after finishing the previous round and require continuous rifaximin.
The Nemechek Protocol reduces chronic inflammation using vagus nerve stimulation, fish oil, olive oil, and frequent rounds of rifaximin as needed will allow the autonomic nervous system to repair itself. Often within a few months, motility improves, and the frequency of bacterial overgrowth relapses, and the need for rifaximin declines.
