• Pop star and actress Selena Gomez recently shared in the comments of a TikTok post that she lives with a gastrointestinal disorder called SIBO.
• Gomez responded to body shamers in the comments of a viral video post that showed her hand over her stomach on the red carpet at a recent film festival.
• SIBO causes excess gas and other uncomfortable symptoms, such as bloating and constipation.
• While there is no cure for SIBO, and the condition is not well understood in medical literature, treatments are available to help with symptom management.

Selena Gomez recently shared she has a rare gastrointestinal disorder known as small intestinal bacterial overgrowth or SIBO.

The 32-year-old pop music icon and “Only Murders in the Building” star revealed the news of her chronic health condition in a viral TikTok video in response to body-shaming commenters. In the video, which has since been deleted, Gomez was captured holding her hand over her stomach on the red carpet at the American French Film Festival in Los Angeles last month.

“This makes me sick,” she wrote in the comments of the now-deleted post. “I have [SIBO] in my small intestine. It flares up. I don’t care that I don’t look like a stick figure. I don’t have that body. End of story. No I am NOT a victim. I’m just human.”

This isn’t the first time Gomez has opened up about her health on social media. In 2017, Gomez shared she had a kidney transplant and also lives with lupus.

These conditions may have contributed to Gomez’ SIBO symptoms, according to Rudolph Bedford, MD, board certified gastroenterologist at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA.

“One of the most common things that happens with SIBO is bloating and belly distention. What’s probably happening is [Gomez] feels bloated, and her belly is distended because of the gas buildup within her system,” Bedford told Healthline.

While there is currently no cure for SIBO, treatments are available to help with symptom management. We spoke with Bedford to learn more about what causes SIBO and why it’s often difficult to treat those who live with it.

What are the signs of SIBO? 

Bedford: SIBO is an overgrowth of bacteria within the intestine, and the common symptoms are anything from abdominal pain to diarrhea, gassiness, bloating, constipation, weight loss, and malabsorption of fats. You may have fatty-looking stools, things of that sort, which are persistent.

You have over 10 trillion bacteria in your body — more than you have cells in your body. All of these bacteria work in the digestive process, and the enzymes that are produced to help digest your foods require these bacteria, and they work in a symbiotic fashion with your body and digestive system.

The problem is that when various species of bacteria overgrow, they may disrupt the digestive process, thereby producing gasses of excessive hydrogen or excessive methane, which causes disruption and discomfort. Because of the overgrowth of these various species of bacteria, you may have diarrhea or not absorb certain vitamins.

What causes SIBO flare-ups?

Bedford: There’s ongoing research, but SIBO is not well understood. Issues with gut motility, stress, diet, or various medications could cause SIBO. A variety of medical conditions can lead to SIBO, including if you’ve had surgery and have abdominal adhesions or scar tissue or have diabetes, lupus, inflammatory bowel disease, or an autoimmune disease called scleroderma.

If you’re immunosuppressed for a condition and are on chemotherapy or some type of therapy that suppresses your immune system, you may develop SIBO.

Selena Gomez had a kidney transplant, and I’m sure she’s taking a variety of immunosuppressive drugs to prevent the kidney from rejecting. She also has lupus, and I have no doubt she’s been on various immunosuppressive medications, which would make her much more susceptible to developing overgrowth of bacteria in her system.

How is SIBO treated?

Bedford: The key is to try to eliminate or reduce the species of bacteria that are so disruptive.

Several antibiotics are used, but the most common ones we use are Xifaxan and Neomycin. We may also place patients on a short-term low FODMAP diet.

A few studies on herbal supplements as a treatment for SIBO have shown some equivalency in their effectiveness compared to antibiotics like Rifaximin and Neomycin.

They have done breath tests on these patients, looking for their hydrogen levels and methanes, and found these herbal products are as effective, if not more effective, than the antibiotic treatment.

Many herbal products, including probiotics, are available to help treat SIBO. These include:

• FC-Cidal
• Candibactin
• LBT1

Where probiotics come into play is that these are the types of bacteria that you really want in your system. So after you’re treated for SIBO, you may want to replant the soil with probiotics to help prevent further recurrence of SIBO.

Fermented foods, like sauerkraut, kimchi, and kefir that contain soil-based probiotics, can also be helpful. If probiotics work for you, that’s great.

Takeaway

Selena Gomez recently shared in a now-deleted TikTok post that she lives with SIBO, a rare GI disorder that currently has no cure.

SIBO causes excess gas and other unpleasant symptoms, such as bloating and constipation. Treatments are available to help with symptom management and should be tailored to the individual.

Antibiotics and a short-term low-FODMAP diet or SIBO diet are often the first-line treatments for SIBO. Herbal supplements, probiotics, and fermented foods can help prevent flare-ups.