IBS, Leaky Gut & Food Sensitivities in Greenville, SC
Functional medicine and acupuncture for IBS, intestinal permeability, and food sensitivities — using precision testing to identify SIBO, gut dysbiosis, and specific dietary triggers, then addressing root causes with a systematic protocol. Not another generic fiber recommendation.
A Note From Dr. Hendry
I run a SIBO breath test on essentially every IBS patient who comes through my door. The published research puts SIBO prevalence at up to 78% in IBS patients — too high to skip the test and go straight to a generic dietary recommendation. What I find shapes the entire protocol: methane-dominant SIBO is treated differently than hydrogen-dominant, and both require gut restoration after bacterial overgrowth is cleared.
The most frustrating clinical scenario in GI is a patient who's been told: "Your colonoscopy was normal, so it's IBS." SIBO doesn't show up on a colonoscopy. Intestinal permeability doesn't. Food sensitivities don't. None of the functional pathology that explains the majority of IBS presentations is visible on standard endoscopy. Functional testing is what answers the question.
The gut is also never a local problem. It's the source of 70% of the immune system. Gut dysbiosis drives neuroinflammation. Intestinal permeability underlies virtually every autoimmune condition. When I treat gut dysfunction, I'm also addressing the systemic conditions downstream — and that's where the most dramatic improvements often happen for patients who thought their brain fog, joint pain, or skin problems had nothing to do with their gut.
IBS & Gut Dysfunction: What the Colonoscopy Misses
IBS is 'functional' dysfunction — neurological and microbial, not structural — and it requires functional testing to identify. The relevant pathology doesn't appear on standard endoscopy.
SIBO — Found in up to 78% of IBS patients. Hydrogen-dominant SIBO produces diarrhea-predominant IBS; methane-dominant SIBO (Intestinal Methanogen Overgrowth) produces constipation-predominant IBS. I use herbal antimicrobial protocols (berberine, oregano, allicin-based formulas) that are highly effective and gentler on the microbiome than rifaximin for most patients.
Gut dysbiosis — An imbalanced microbiome with insufficient beneficial species alters gut motility, intestinal permeability, and visceral pain sensitivity. Comprehensive stool analysis identifies dysbiotic patterns, pathogenic bacteria, and markers of gut inflammation.
Post-infectious IBS — Developing after a GI infection, this involves enteric nervous system damage to the migrating motor complex that creates the conditions for SIBO. Many patients trace their IBS to a specific illness — which has specific treatment implications.
Leaky Gut: The Root of Systemic Inflammation
The gut wall is one cell layer thick in places, controlled by tight junction proteins. When those junctions open — triggered by gliadin (a gluten protein that directly activates zonulin), chronic NSAID use, alcohol, chronic stress, or gut infections — bacteria, toxins, and food proteins cross into circulation. The immune system responds.
The result isn't always digestive. Brain fog. Joint pain. Skin conditions. Autoimmune flares. These are downstream presentations of intestinal permeability in organs with no obvious connection to the gut — driven by systemic immune activation. Intestinal permeability is documented in virtually every autoimmune condition studied.
Dr. Hendry tests intestinal permeability with validated markers — zonulin and the lactulose/mannitol ratio — to establish objective baseline and track healing. The 5R gut restoration protocol addresses it systematically: Remove offending foods and pathogens, Replace digestive factors, Reinoculate the microbiome, Repair the lining with glutamine and zinc carnosine, and Rebalance lifestyle factors.
Food Sensitivities: The 72-Hour Delay
The 72-hour delay between eating a trigger food and its consequences is what makes food sensitivities so difficult to self-identify. Unlike food allergies — immediate IgE responses — food sensitivities are slow, IgG-mediated reactions that show up as bloating the next day, brain fog the day after, a headache two days later. Without systematic elimination and reintroduction, most patients never connect the dots.
The most common triggers: gluten, dairy, eggs, soy, corn, nightshades. Gluten sensitivity distinct from celiac disease — non-celiac gluten sensitivity — is increasingly recognized as a real condition capable of causing neurological, gastrointestinal, and systemic symptoms through intestinal permeability and neuroinflammation.
I use IgG food sensitivity testing as a map for the initial elimination phase, then walk patients through systematic reintroduction — one food every three days, tracking symptoms carefully. The elimination-reintroduction protocol is the gold standard. The goal is healing the underlying gut barrier — not permanent dietary restriction.
Frequently Asked Questions
What testing does Dr. Hendry use for digestive conditions?
SIBO hydrogen/methane breath test (run on essentially every IBS patient given the 78% prevalence data), intestinal permeability markers (zonulin and lactulose/mannitol ratio), IgG food sensitivity panel to guide the elimination protocol, comprehensive stool microbiome analysis, and inflammatory markers (hsCRP, calprotectin for IBD differentiation). This identifies the specific dysfunction driving each patient's presentation.
Is the low-FODMAP diet a long-term solution?
No — it's a diagnostic and symptomatic tool, not a permanent diet. The low-FODMAP elimination phase identifies specific fermentable carbohydrate triggers. Systematic reintroduction clarifies which specific FODMAPs are problematic. Long-term FODMAP restriction impoverishes the gut microbiome and is not appropriate as an ongoing dietary pattern.
Can stress cause IBS flares?
Yes, through the gut-brain axis. Psychological stress directly affects gut motility, permeability, and pain sensitivity via the enteric nervous system and vagus nerve. Acupuncture is clinically effective for IBS partly because it addresses the neural regulation of the gut alongside the structural gut dysfunction. Addressing both dimensions is required for lasting improvement.
What foods actually help heal the gut lining?
Bone broth and collagen (glycine and proline support enterocyte repair), fermented foods (beneficial bacteria and short-chain fatty acids strengthen the mucosal lining), cooked vegetables (butyrate-producing fiber feeds colonocytes), and omega-3 fatty acids (reduce gut mucosal inflammation). Equally important: removing gluten, alcohol, NSAIDs, and excess sugar that directly damage the gut barrier.
Can acupuncture help IBS and gut issues?
Yes. Multiple systematic reviews confirm acupuncture significantly improves abdominal pain, bloating, and bowel habit regularity in IBS. The mechanisms include enteric nervous system regulation, reduction of visceral hypersensitivity, gut-brain axis modulation, and direct effects on gut motility. Most patients notice improvement in pain and bloating from their first few sessions.
Services for Gut & Digestive Health
Ready to Get to the Root of It?
Dr. William Hendry will conduct a comprehensive evaluation and build an integrative treatment plan around your specific condition. New patients welcome in Greenville, SC.