Understanding and paying attention to any digestion disorders will enable you to immediately tell something is not right with your intestinal tract. This will make immediate proper treatments easier to perform, and suitable medications can be prescribed. Among those common symptoms concerning intestinal bacterial infection, variation may occur among some patients. Despite this, knowing all major possible symptoms can help you determine what to do as an initial treatment and when you should call a doctor for medical advice.

Common initial symptoms

People suffering from intestinal bacterial infection commonly experience bacteria overgrowth along the gastrointestinal tracts, from the bowel to the colon. What is referred as an intestinal bacterial infection is commonly triggered by abnormal presence of a large amount of bacteria in the small intestine. When this infection presents, some digestive abnormalities may occur. This is how your body is telling you about this bacteria infestation in your small intestine. Some initial symptoms you might find when you are having this infection include:

• Excess wind—or more commonly known as farting

Excess wind occurs inside the body because of the air we unconsciously swallow while eating, drinking, or swallowing saliva. In normal condition, people fart 5 to 15 times a day. Excessive farting, which exceeds these numbers should be concerned about, as it may be a sign of abnormal presence of gas in your intestine, as a by-product of the bacteria activity on site.

• Bloating and severe discomfort after eating

Although some foods are believed to cause gas in our gastrointestinal tract, bloating and severe discomfort after eating may also be one of the most common symptom of intestinal bacterial infection. This is caused by the lack of digestive enzyme produced by our body as a result of overgrown bacteria in small intestine.

Sudden watery stool also needs to be concern, as this can be a way your body tells you about the intestinal bacteria infestation. The infection inhibits our digestive tract to produce proper digestive enzyme. In addition, this bacteria overgrowth also prevent the intestine from absorbing the taken foods. As a result, it is improperly disposed as watery stool known as diarrhea.

• Abdominal pain

Another symptom is abdominal pain or cramps, which is resulted from sudden obstruction to the small intestine or colon. This obstruction comes from the inflammation triggered by the presence of large number of bacteria on site. With intestinal bacterial infection, the cramps are usually intermittent and may cause cold fever.

Although this sign is less common than diarrhea, it may presents during the intestinal bacterial infection. Similar to diarrhea, constipation is triggered by the body inability to digest foods because of the presence of bacteria on the small intestine walls.

More severe symptoms

Intestinal bacterial infection may also be signed by continuous vomiting, which is why the disease is also referred as food poisoning. Although you can treat this bacterial infection at home, failing to treat it right will result in more severe infection that is signed by some symptoms as:

• Malnutrition and excessive weight loss

Since the bacteria interfere food absorption, they also inhibit proper vitamins and minerals absorption. If the infection is not well treated, this lack of vitamins and minerals absorption may end up in severe malnutrition and can be visible as excessive weight loss.

• Rectal bleeding

Generally, bacterial infection presents in the small intestine, since the bacteria residing in the colon infest this part of digestive tract. However, when the infection of the small intestine is not thoroughly treated, these bacteria may infest the intestine wall, causing bleeding that is visible when you finish going to the bathroom. Bleeding caused by the infection occurs as deep-red bleeding, instead of the bright-red one.

• Constant vomiting and severe dehydration

Intestinal bacterial infection that is not treated might also lead to excessive vomiting. Patients can possibly vomit every time foods pass through the intestine, and this causes poor fluid retention. As an effect, the body is dehydrated. Frequent vomiting and dehydration will result in extreme fatigue and powerlessness.

Although small intestinal bacterial infection is not necessarily a life-threatening condition, late treatments might result in some unexpected health problems, and may cause the infesting bacteria harder to get rid of. Hence, once you notice two or more initial symptoms mentioned above, it is advised that you immediately see a doctor for advice. Taking some probiotics or paracetamol, which are effective for controlling bacteria overgrowth are also effective home remedies you can perform as an initial treatment.