Abstract
We tested predictions from the dysfunctional gut syndrome hypothesis that there are statistical associations between minor health complaints. Two short symptom questionnaires were completed by people drawn from a working population ( n= 882) and from the general population ( n= 536). In the first study, symptoms of fungal origin (thrush, athlete's foot, Tinea and dandruff) were associated both with themselves, with the colonic symptom of diarrhoea and with abnormal thirst. In the second study, fungal symptoms and diarrhoea were not associated with psychological symptoms but the latter were associated with each other, with wheeze and with abnormal thirst. These data are inconsistent with a single agent ( Candida ) having both somatic and psychological effects, but are consistent with the hypothesis that dysfunctional gut syndrome can result from a variety of different types of gut microflora pathology.