When most people think about gut infections or bacterial imbalance, they might think about Candida, parasites, or more familiar bacteria such as E. coli or Clostridium difficile. But Pseudomonas is different—and when this bacteria grows in your digestive tract, it can cause a wide variety of gut symptoms and be extremely difficult to treat.

What Is Pseudomonas?

Pseudomonas is a type of bacteria commonly found in water and soil. One species, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, is especially known in medicine because it can cause serious infections in hospitalized patients. It’s considered an “opportunistic pathogen,” meaning it tends to create problems when the body is vulnerable.

But Pseudomonas doesn’t just appear in hospitals. I have seen it colonize the gastrointestinal tract in regular healthy people who haven’t been in the hospital, leading to Pseudomonas gut infection or Pseudomonas overgrowth. This can trigger chronic digestive issues that are often misdiagnosed.

Symptoms of Pseudomonas Overgrowth in the Gut

The symptoms of Pseudomonas GI overgrowth overlap with many other digestive problems, which is why it’s often misdiagnosed. People may experience:

• Chronic bloating or excessive gas

• Abdominal pain, cramping, or discomfort

• Diarrhea or loose stools

• Constipation, or alternating constipation and diarrhea

• Persistent gut irritation and inflammation

• Food sensitivities and difficulty digesting carbohydrates and other foods

• Systemic effects like fatigue and brain fog due to the chronic gut imbalance

These symptoms can look identical to IBS, SIBO, Candida overgrowth, and many other things, making accurate diagnosis essential.

Why Pseudomonas Is Difficult to Treat

The real challenge with Pseudomonas gut overgrowth is that this bacteria is highly resistant to antibiotics. In fact, Pseudomonas aeruginosa is well known in the medical community for its antibiotic resistance. It can also produce a biofilm— which is a protective layer that shields it from both the immune system and many treatments.

This means standard antibiotics that work for other bacterial infections often will not work for Pseudomonas. In some cases, antibiotics even make things worse by killing off competing bacteria and allowing Pseudomonas to thrive.

Even herbal antimicrobials, which are often very effective for gut infections, may not be strong enough against Pseudomonas. This is why patients can struggle with persistent digestive symptoms for years, despite trying multiple treatments.

The Unique Problem with Pseudomonas

Pseudomonas is such a difficult gut problem because of three factors:

1. It often goes undiagnosed. Standard stool tests don’t always identify Pseudomonas, and many doctors aren’t looking for it.

2. It mimics other conditions. The symptoms overlap with SIBO, Candida, and IBS, leading patients down the wrong treatment path.

3. It’s highly resistant. Even when identified, Pseudomonas treatment requires a very specific, targeted approach.

This combination makes Pseudomonas one of the most stubborn causes of digestive symptoms.

Treatment for Pseudomonas Gut Infection

Successfully addressing pseudomonas usually requires:

• Accurate testing to confirm Pseudomonas is present in the gut.

• A customized treatment plan, which may include prescription medications, specific natural agents, or a combination tailored to the patient and everything that is going on in their microbiome.

• Gut microbiome support after treatment, helping beneficial bacteria re-establish and preventing pseudomonas from returning.

Because Pseudomonas is resistant and complex, a one-size-fits-all treatment rarely works. Individualized care is key.

Final Thoughts

Pseudomonas overgrowth may not be the most common gut infection, but when it does occur, it is one of the most persistent and difficult to resolve. If you’ve been struggling with chronic digestive symptoms despite multiple treatments, be sure to find out if Pseudomonas is the hidden culprit.

At the IBS Treatment Center, we test everyone for Pseudomonas, as well as over one hundred other organisms, and we’ve seen patients who spent years treating Candida or SIBO, only to find Pseudomonas was the true problem. Once properly diagnosed and treated, their digestive health finally improved.

If you’ve been frustrated by ongoing bloating, diarrhea, abdominal pain, or food sensitivities, don’t give up. The answer may be deeper than you realize—and Pseudomonas might just be the missing piece.

And if you need more help solving your digestive problems, contact us at the IBS Treatment Center at the link below. We’ve been working with patients around the world for over 20 years via telemedicine, and we’d be happy to work with you too.

And remember to take good care of your body. It’s the only place that you have to live.

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