6 Gut Infection Case Studies: Why You Should Get Stool Testing Done ASAP

“Strongyloides stercoralis”

That’s the parasitic roundworm infection I had a few years ago.  Sounds like fun, right?

It’s funny, I followed a STRICT diet back then, did everything right, and still struggled with diarrhea… and this one test result finally revealed the biggest reason I felt so stuck. Once I treated the infection, everything about my health changed. It’s almost like I’d been driving with one foot on the gas and one foot on the break the whole time, and now my health was going 100 mph toward a beautiful horizon.

The parasite was there the whole time, wreaking havoc on my gut and preventing me from fully healing. I likely picked it up a few years before on a trip to South Padre Island, Texas.

And once we started working with 1-on-1 clients, I knew proper stool testing would be one of the most important steps toward helping our clients get healthy.

But All Stool Tests Are Not Created Equal

When we consulted, most of our 1-on-1 private clients required proper stool testing. These people were doing everything right with diet, supplements, and lifestyle… but just like me, they struggled with lingering digestive problems that didn’t add up. Worse yet, most of them have done stool testing in the past and the results were negative.

The truth is, stool testing is really complex and challenging.

That’s why we’ve spent a lot of time researching the best stool testing protocols and studying the tests our mentors use.

And what we’ve come up with, we believe, is one of the more effective ways to find out if any bad bugs are hiding in your gut.

There’s No Perfect Stool Test out There (Yet)

I could go in-depth on the science of stool testing, but I’m about to share some incredible case studies with you so I’ll cut to the chase. There’s no perfect stool test out there… yet. Each test has it’s own accuracy level, reliability, positives, negatives, etc. And the most important thing for our clients is to avoid a false negative. If there’s something there, we want to be able to find it…

Which is why we combine the two most effective technologies available right now.

That’s right, we have our clients get two stool tests done together for the most accurate picture of their gut health. In a moment I’m going to show you why, but for now here’s a brief explanation:

Test 1: The BioHealth #401H GI Pathogen Screen

This test uses advanced staining and antigen techniques to recover pathogens from 3 stool samples, taken each day for three days. I like the fact that this test uses samples taken over multiple days… and not only that, but it uses state of the art technology to look for pathogens that could be missed.

Test 2: The Doctor’s Data Parasitology x3 

Update: Since the time of this post, we’ve updated our recommendations for stool testing. The Metametrix #2105 is actually no longer available and many other reasons have led us to change our recommendation for the second test to the Doctor’s Data Parasitology x3 stool test.

As stated on the Doctor’s Data website, this is also a growth-based culture which is the standard of practice in clinical microbiology. It also uses sensitive biochemical assays and microscopy, and thoroughly evaluates the status of beneficial and pathogenic microorganisms including aerobic and anaerobic bacteria, yeast and parasites.

I can explain to you in exhausting detail why these two should always be used together when you’re doing stool testing… but I’d so much rather show you. I’ve clipped out 6 case studies from previous 1-on-1 private clients so you can see how powerful it is when these two tests are used together and what you are able to detect using them in conjunction.

Of course, these are anonymous and any and all personal details have been removed for their privacy… but just seeing the results themselves is astonishing.

Note: The case studies used in this post still reflect our prior recommendation of the Metametrix #2105, but we’re now recommending the Doctor’s Data Parasitology x3 stool test. The general idea of using two tests at the same time is the biggest takeaway.

Gut Infection Case Study 1: 35-Year-Old Female with Ulcerative Colitis

She came to us unable to gain weight and exhausted, struggling with chronic bloody diarrhea and nausea. Here are her test results:

Metametrix #2105 (CLEAN):

BioHealth #401H (DIRTY):

Notice she was positive for a parasitic infection called “Giardia lamblia.” Why this is important is that the infection was not spotted on the #2105… so we never would have known she was dealing with this if she hadn’t of used both tests. She’s now working on getting this infection treated.

Gut Infection Case Study 2: 57-Year-Old Female with Severe Ulcerative Proctitis

She came to us with severe bloating, constipation, nausea, and GERD. Here are her test results:

Metametrix #2105 (CLEAN):

BioHealth #401H (DIRTY):

Notice she was positive for H. pylori, but it wasn’t found with the DNA/PCR technology. 50% of the time it’s found with the #2105, the other half it’s found with the #401H. It’s a common infection with our clients, but we never know which test it will show positive on… which is another reason why we always ask for both.

Gut Infection Case Study 3: 52-Year-Old Female with Celiac Disease and Diverticulitis

She came to us with severe diarrhea, stomach pain, malnourished, and depressed. Here are her test results:

Metametrix #2105 (CLEAN):

BioHealth #401H (DIRTY):

Notice she was positive for a parasitic infection called “Entamoeba coli.” It’s important to pursue this infection because it can also be a sign of having a more severe infection of Entamoeba histolytica. Another instance where one test had results and the other was clean… but let’s not pick on the #2105 anymore and see a few different case studies.

Gut Infection Case Study 4: 65-Year-Old Male with Upper and Lower Abdominal Pain

He came to us with upper and lower abdominal pain, bloating, and diarrhea. Here are his test results:

Metametrix #2105 (DIRTY):

BioHealth #401H (DIRTY):

Notice he has a lot going on here. The #2105 found a yeast overgrowth and an Ascaris lumbricoides infection (giant roundworm). Not only that, but the #401H picked up a C. diff infection that was missed on the #2105. I’m so grateful he was able to have both tests done in this case.

Gut Infection Case Study 5: 65-Year-Old Female with Crohn’s 

She came to us suffering with diarrhea, strictures, and fatigue. Here are her test results:

Metametrix #2105 (CLEAN):

BioHealth #401H (DIRTY):

Notice she was positive for both H. pylori and Blastocystis hominis, an intestinal parasite, and required taking care of both of them. This is another case where we are so grateful she had both tests done because the H. pylori was not positive with DNA/PCR technology in this case.   

Gut Infection Case Study 6: 71-Year-Old Male with Severe Diarrhea

He came to us with severe diarrhea, hiatal hernia, malnourished, and excessive mucous. Here are his test results:

Metametrix #2105 (DIRTY):

BioHealth #401H (CLEAN):

In this case, the #2105 comes in handy discovering both H. pylori and Campylobacter, a bacterial infection. Notice the #401H is clean.

Why You Should Get Stool Testing Done ASAP

I hope these 6 gut infection case studies had an impact on you. I wish I could have seen them years ago when I was banging my head against the wall trying to figure out what was really going on in my gut.

If you’re still struggling with digestive problems despite all your best diet, supplement, and lifestyle changes… you could have a parasite or bacterial infection. I highly recommend you get these two tests done together, the #401H from BioHealth and the Parasitology x3 from Doctor’s Data. It could be the one (or two) test result standing between you and finally taking control of your digestive health.

IF you think you could have a Gut Infection or are interested in learning more, you can check out our Gut-Infections Call here:

–> http://gutinfections.scdlifestyle.com

If you want to work with our recommended practitioners 1-on-1 for your specific challenges, please start by booking a case review here:

–> https://healthygut.com/practitioners/

In good health,

Jordan

P.S. As stated above, since the time of this post, we’ve updated our recommendations for stool testing. The Metametrix #2105 is actually no longer available and many other reasons have led us to change our recommendation for the second test to the Doctor’s Data Parasitology x3 stool test. Our hope is the general idea of using two quality stool tests at the same time will still be the biggest takeaway.