Researchers are now looking at your gut bacteria causing inability to absorb B12 and folic acid. Ubiome Lab can test stool bacteria DNA

[2paiges]

This is not a scam because it's not about money. If you have ins. they will file for you, if no ins. they will test you anyway. They send you a kit to send them a sample using a long swab and a vial of liquid that you return to them. It takes about 3 weeks for results. they will give you extensive report with species found, your level of probiotics present and they sell no products, just give advice to improve your gut health depending on what species are present.

[wedgewood]

I think that you are in the USA , and this society is based in the U.K. so most of our members are here .

It sounds like a great facility. Definitely a useful test for P.A.patients who have gut problems .Wish we had such a test here . But thanks for the information . Vry best wishes .

[Hidden in reply to wedgewood]

I think this is the same thing here in the uk... it’s £125.

atlasbiomed.com/uk/microbiome

[Gambit62 Administrator in reply to Hidden]

AbiY85, suggest you edit to put in the complete URL reference - link is incomplete so doesn't work

[Hidden in reply to Gambit62]

It works for me... Maybe just try doing a search microbiome on the atlasbiomed.com website.

[Gambit62 Administrator in reply to Hidden]

doesn't appear for me as a link at all ... may be a browser thing.

not to worry

[2paiges in reply to Gambit62]

Ubiome.com

[wedgewood in reply to Hidden]

Thanks for that info .

[Gambit62 Administrator in reply to wedgewood]

PA strictly speaking is quite a specific cause of B12 deficiency - auto-immune attacking the mechanism that allows absorption of B12.

bacterial overgrowth etc are other potential causes and more of a risk factor in relation to other conditions that can affect transit through the gut such as hypothyroidism.

To be honest I think this test has actually been around for some time.

[fbirder in reply to Gambit62]

I thought SIBO was a result of the achlorhydria caused by PA.

[wedgewood in reply to fbirder]

So did I .

[Gambit62 Administrator in reply to Gambit62]

fbirder wedgewood I may have misremembered but in looking at how underactive thyroid may be connected to absorption problems one thing that comes up often is muscle weakness in the digestive tract meaning slow movement through the gut which also seems to create the right conditions for bacterial overgrowth ... though not confined to the small intestine.

[2paiges in reply to Gambit62]

Thanks for your reply. I most definitely have a slow gut

[Cherylclaire Forum Support]

Really, fbirder and wedgewood ? That's interesting. Do either of you know where that information could be sourced ?

[fbirder in reply to Cherylclaire]

I would have to search through my pile of literature. It was in one of the early documents I found about achlorhydria.

[2paiges]

Boy, I’m glad your not my doctor. No seriously, Did you take a DNA TEST where they can tell you what’s going on in your body down to the cellular level just by testing your spit.

I think it’s awesome to know what species you are harboring, tell you in real time if the probiotics you take are within normal limits to provide you the best gut health possibly or not.

[Sanders1]

Thanks 2paiges. I did the ubiome test months ago. I'll have to look at my results again.

[Cherylclaire Forum Support]

Reading the article linked by Hidden , achlorhydria caused by PA is one of a number of possibilities- if bacteria were shown to be in upper end of gut, not lower.

Seems the safest way to tell whether and where the bacteria exist is the Lactulose Breath Test, which, by testing for hydrogen levels in your breath every 1/2 hr then charting rise, can show where peaks occur, and most crucially, when. So an early rise would indicate upper, so possibly PA, unless it indicates lower but with a fast transit !

The breath test is good at showing whether harmful bacteria are collecting in the wrong place but less conclusive re.fast/ slow gut : still, a bit more scientific than just eating corn and waiting !

[2paiges in reply to Cherylclaire]

How do you do a breath test?

[Cherylclaire Forum Support]

Hi 2paiges , don't know about others- assume it must be a fairly common test for PA people (given fbirder's and wedgewood's comments) but I was sent for it by Haematology because they could not explain why my MMA remained raised and thought it might be due to SIBO:

Small Intestines are not that accessible so to determine whether I have Bacterial Overgrowth in that region is only possible by a Lactulose Breath Test - which involves not eating or drinking, having a lactulose drink, then having breath samples taken every 1/2 hr for several hours. These are taken away and examined for hydrogen and a chart is produced so that experts can determine whether this chart shows signs of bacteria and where they might be in digestive system, which is why timing is so crucial. Because my results showed possible SIBO, I have now been sent to a Gastroenterologist for further testing, probably to eliminate any other more easily observable causes in stomach or bowel.

My GP was surprised that the breath test was available on the NHS, so it seems unlikely that a GP could initiate this.