Intermittent fecal/sulfur breath odor

Posted by pbleonar @pbleonar, Jun 8, 2017

After scouring the web, I'm certain I'm not the only person with this problem, and not the only person who's been told they were imagining it. Anyway, the issue is I have intermittent odors when I talk (yes, I've been to the dentist 10+ times-- all say my oral hygiene is on point and xrays and inspections showed nothing). The only time it's practically non-existent is when I eat an unhealthily low-carb diet. Like others online, I've had CT scans, Barium swallows, endosocopy/colonoscopy, screening for parasites (getting one more from an IDS before crossing that off my list). All showed up negative. I tested positive for SIBO, but after researching that for the past 3 years, I'm certain SIBO is more of a symptom than a primary causal problem. Furthermore, even when I treated SIBO with heavy antibiotics, it did absolutely nothing for my breath-- and yes I was cleared of SIBO after a couple rounds of work. yet, the moment I eat carbs, I still get a "did someone just s*it themselves?" comment.

I guess what I'm getting at is I'm tired of doctors just saying it's IBS and SIBO and then proceeding to do zero investigating afterwards. I want to get down to the root cause of this, but most doctors are either too apathetic or too incompetent to do anything. Are there any researchers who specialize in studying and diagnosing hard to find problems in the GI tract? Between the 3 GI docs, 2 ENTs, 2 NDs and 1 IDS, I just can't take normal doctors anymore. I want my life back and I want a specific root cause so I can work on progressing from there.

Further notes: Diarrhea actually cleared up when I ate junk food and I had zero bloating, albeit the odor remained.

Xifaxan and neomycin did nothing for the odor, nor did the elemental diet. I actually think the elemental diet made the smell as bad or
worse than before.

*******Nitazoxanide********** worked wonders for the month I was on it. Solid stools even with foods that normally cause my ibs to flare up.
It's exactly the reason I felt there was more going on to everything than just SIBO and IBS.

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Digestive Health Support Group.

Profile picture for pbleonar @pbleonar

Yea, Most everything under the sun has been tried, including probiotics and enzymes (pancreatic too).

And that's what I thought, regarding the nitazoxanide, but the parasite tests-- so far-- have come up negative. That and I had to properly motivate the doctor to take that seriously and test for them. This is the same doctor who wouldn't take the parasite thing seriously after telling her I worked in a sewer as punishment for a couple weeks and that the water supply for the dorms frequently came out different colors at least once a month, and I, like an idiot drank from it on a semi regular basis. With a straight face, she asked me how I knew the water supply at my old base was contaminated if the base never sent us an informative letter. Apparently she has faith in the government being 100% honest with its armed forces and the public in general

Anyway, one more parasite test will be completed, fecal and blood work, some time next week, and then that'll be crossed off the list. If so, I need one great specialist to take this up and start investigating. There are many others out there having the same problem and if someone could help dx and treat the issue for good, I guarantee they'd have a large group of people travelling from around the country to seek the same help.

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Hey have your bad breath been solved I’m dealing with the same issue but no doctor is helping me @pbleonar

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My mother had a fecal odor to her breath, and I’ve been told I do also. What the common problem is: Barrett’s esophagus. Barrett’s changes the lining of the esophagus to be like the lining of the colon. Barrett’s is a precancerous condition. Solution?? Lots of breath mints, sugar free gum, and mouthwash.

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Has anyone heard of tonsil stones? That can cause fecal mouth odor.

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Profile picture for linda125 @linda125

Has anyone heard of tonsil stones? That can cause fecal mouth odor.

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Yes- I had them. I had my tonsils removed-it was the only way I could get rid of them. I’m glad I did it even though it was brutal surgery.

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Profile picture for nwcs @nwcs

Yes- I had them. I had my tonsils removed-it was the only way I could get rid of them. I’m glad I did it even though it was brutal surgery.

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How were you diagnosed? Did your medical doctor find them or did your dentist? You say you are glad you had the surgery, were they causing you pain or discomfort?

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Profile picture for catt8722 @catt8722

I am experiencing the exact same problems. For about 8 years now. I just went to the dentist a month ago. Nothing there is causing it. My dentist said there are three things that causes bad breath. Gums, nasal or stomach. The ent found nothing. Actually I have been to several ent doctors. Also several dentist. I’ve had several CT scans with contrast. They found nothing. I recently visits doctor who ordered blood test for amalayse. (I hope I spelled it correctly) It’s an enzyme that is made by both the pancreas and salivary glands. There is something about my saliva that I just can’t seem to figure out. It seems this is where the problem is. After finding out about the elevated enzyme she ordered an ultrasound of my abdomen. The results showed a dialated pancreatic duct in the distal portion. And a fatty liver. The doctor said it comes from eating too many carbs. My body does not seem to digest carbs and sugar. I am waiting on a CT scan . My insurance company denied it. So my PCP is sending me to a Gastroenterologist. Hopefully they will approve it. From what I have read on google. A dilated duct could be a tumor. Also high risk for cancer. When the duct is blocked the digestive enzymes are not released. I have always said my food is not digesting properly because can smell everything eat. My poop smells very bad. The smell is also coming through my nose. I know for sure it is in my nose and throat. My breath can fill up a room. It has a fecal/sour smell. I’m not sure if it is coming from my body. I have heard vitamin b2 may help. It is Riboflavin. I will keep everyone posted. I will have a phone conference on April 23 due to coronavirus. I hope to have the scan as soon as all this is over. My doctor just got my results from the sibo test. I hope to get those this week. Good luck.

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Can I know what is your result? I want to know the exact cause of this issue 😭

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Profile picture for irr4et @irr4et

My father had this problem and his GI Dr advised him to take a soil based probiotic at bedtime for 6 wks the switch to a full spectrum probiotics for two mos, and every 6 mos switch to a different brand. This eliminated the offending breath. I wish it was ok for me to mention brand names here but it isn’t. I would go to a good supplement shop and get them there.

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Hey do you mind sending me the probiotics that he took please. This will be a huge help

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Why did you stop taking Nitazoxanide? That's an anti-parasite, anti-viral drug. Maybe you have some kind of parasite????

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Profile picture for sarayana98 @sarayana98

Can I know what is your result? I want to know the exact cause of this issue 😭

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I would get white stones in my tonsils & experienced sore throat along with a bad breath. So I had tonsils removed and don't have to deal with that problem. Its been suggested to gargle with warm salt water to get the stones to loosen. Also use a Q-tip and try to dislodge the stones if visible.

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Profile picture for tomtom25 @tomtom25

Hey do you mind sending me the probiotics that he took please. This will be a huge help

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Hey! Did you get a reply on the above? I have the same issue. Tonsils surgery done. I was diagnosed with Sibo, but I still experience it every now and then. Thanking you before hand.

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