Fungal species occupying our GI tracts and other nooks and crannies of our bodies live quietly, without causing health problems, until a course of antibiotics, steroids, overconsumption of sugars, excessive alcohol intake, or stomach acid–suppressing drugs—many of the same factors that enable SIBO to develop—allow fungi to proliferate.2,5,6 Any situation in which the intestinal lining becomes inflamed, such as in dysbiosis, SIBO, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, and probably irritable bowel syndrome, also creates an environment favorable for fungal proliferation.
