What causes Gas?

Everyone has gas. It is absorbed in the blood stream or expelled by burping/ belching or passed through rectum

Occasional belch during or after meals is normal. Frequent belching may be due to excessive swallowing of the air. Most people produce about 1 to 4 pints of gas per day and pass it through rectum about 14 to 23 times a day

Composition of Gas

Gas is composed of many vapors: carbon dioxide, oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, and sometimes methane. The unpleasant odor is from sulfur. Only one in three persons may generate Methane. If your fecal matters float in water, you probably produce Methane

Sources of Gas

There are three sources: Swallowed air, Neutralization of stomach acid, and digestion of food in large intestine by bacteria.

Swallowed Air

Whenever you eat or drink anything, you naturally swallow some of the air. Normally this is expelled out by belching or burping. The air consists of nitrogen oxygen and carbon dioxide. The air not expelled by belching moves to large intestine via small intestine, where it is expelled through rectum

Excessive air is swallowed by eating or drinking rapidly, chewing gum, smoking, or wearing loose dentures

Neutralizing stomach acid

When the stomach acid is mixed with bicarbonates in the digestive juices, the chemical process creates Carbon Dioxide. Normally, this is absorbed into the blood stream and does not pass through rectum. If you have excessive stomach acid, and take baking soda, the excessive gas formed is normally expelled out as belching, some my be expelled out throgh rectum

Digestion in Large intestine

Some of the sugars (Raffinose, Fructose, Sorbitol), soluble fiber, and most of the starches are not broken down in the small intestine. There may be undigested dairy products if you have low lactase. The bacteria in the large intestine digests these foods and generates hydrogen and carbon dioxide. In some cases (one out of three), Methane gas is also generated. Some of the bacteria may destroy hydrogen. \ These gases are finally expelled via rectum

Amount of gas produced varies from person to person, food to food.

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