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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.

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noble77 | @noble77 | Jan 27 7:46am
In reply to @jlharsh "Hi @noble77. You mention having the same bad breath problems as @laceys63, struggling to figure out..." + (show)
Profile picture for Janell, Volunteer Mentor @jlharsh

Hi @noble77. You mention having the same bad breath problems as @laceys63, struggling to figure out if something in maybe your GI is causing it. It is frustrating to keep trying mouthwashes that work for a time but then you have to switch and try another one. I am hopeful you will find help you need as you keep trying to figure out what is going on, perhaps a connection elsewhere like your gut.

I did just listen to a podcast Mayo Clinic’s “On Nutrition” put out that you may find helpful. I learned a lot about my mouth, how it’s connected with my general health, and even where medical professionals are in terms of understanding it all (or not). You will want to scroll down to find the episode:
- “Whole-Body Care, Starting With a Smile” (01/16/2026) https://mcpress.mayoclinic.org/podcasts/on-nutrition/

I would love to hear what you think about the information shared on the podcast.

Do you think you will look for a dentist and/or primary care doctor willing to help you?

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@jlharsh Thank you so much for responding and the information. I will definitely watch the video and let you know what I think. Yes I would like like to find a doctor who’s willing to help me resolve the issue. I honestly think about suicide because of this. I can’t take it anymore.

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Janell, Volunteer Mentor | @jlharsh | Jan 27 11:45am
In reply to @noble77 "@jlharsh Thank you so much for responding and the information. I will definitely watch the video..." + (show)
Profile picture for noble77 @noble77

@jlharsh Thank you so much for responding and the information. I will definitely watch the video and let you know what I think. Yes I would like like to find a doctor who’s willing to help me resolve the issue. I honestly think about suicide because of this. I can’t take it anymore.

Jump to this post

@noble77 Thank you for your honesty.

While I haven’t considered suicide, I have most definitely had times that I thought that death would be better than where I was.

Are you able, willing to share with me the biggest thing that is making you emotionally, mentally feeling this way? Do you have someone, maybe family or friend you can talk to?

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mrshealth1 | @mrshealth1 | 6 days ago
In reply to @laceys63 "whenever i talk to people i see them scratching their nose or rubbing it, i know..." + (show)
Profile picture for laceys63 @laceys63

whenever i talk to people i see them scratching their nose or rubbing it, i know i have bad breath but this happens whenever i just finished brushing, and gargling my teeth, and scrubbed my tongue, but i feel that the smell doesn't come from inside my mouth but from a deeper or from my stomach. Also, whenever i'm inside a car and i yawn or if i talk that people think that there's feces inside the vehicle. pls pls help! it is embarrasing. thank you

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@laceys63

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Moderator
Lisa Lucier, Moderator | @lisalucier | 6 days ago
In reply to @mrshealth1 "@laceys63" + (show)

@mrshealth1 - I believe the rest of your message to @laceys63 beyond the username did not get posted. Would you kindly try posting it again?

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cj123 | @cj123 | 2 days ago
In reply to @jojododo "@cj123 have you had any updates to share? For the first time in my life I'm..." + (show)
Profile picture for jojododo @jojododo

@cj123 have you had any updates to share? For the first time in my life I'm working full time in retail and it has been a miserable experience. It was a huge mistake to go into a job where I'm constantly face to face with people. I'm stuck because I need the health insurance. I had a coworker last night make the dreaded someone farted comment. I dread going to work today.

I'm not sure if my problem has gotten worse or if I'm getting more confirmation of the same problem because I now around people 5 days a week. Previously I worked from home 80 to 100 %.

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@jojododo hi apologies for the delayed response!
Overall this last year was more positive but not sure if that was due to my life being so busy with work/family, I didn't give myself the chance for it to consume my every second thought...

Like @lowhp I consciously I became stricter with my oral hygiene (it was already good) which my dentist agreed. However, annoyingly I have a wisdom tooth that needs removing which is causing nerve pain and smell due to its position so this doesn't help with my concern of my breath smell. It does keep me extra diligent so it's a double edge sword.

I've kept my diet relatively the same but introduced more gut friendly foods & fibre where possible.

I'd say when I had really bad flare ups it was due to me eating bad or drinking excessive alcohol but I wasn't surprised by the outcome as I knew it would cause some sort of reaction ( I would be on holiday and wanted to enjoy myself).

My advice for you would be
1. Try not to stress, stress makes everything worse! (Easier said than done but once you start being present in the moment everything becomes a bit more enjoyable).
2. Bring a portable toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, mouthwash alcohol free that you can use to freshen up during the work day.
3. Drink plenty of water, with a good PH level.
4. Have a mini spray perfume/aftershave (body spray) and use throughout the day, this will change the narrative & have people compliment you on always smelling like a positive thing rather than focus on the negative.

I hope to have a more settled year where I can investigate this thoroughly with examinations etc, so will keep you posted 🙂

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