You sure do But could it be a good thing?
A recent report from the Mayo Clinic is shedding new light on intestinal gas.
We all have a very specific view on flatulence and unless you are an adolescent boy (or acting like one) it is something we hold back and feel embarrassed about.
In the report it is mentioned that a healthy individual can have up to 18 flatulence’s per day and be perfectly normal*.
In fact it may very well be a sign of your having a healthy gut!
And in turn no gas might be a sign that your gut microbiology is not healthy!
We have been talking about gut microbes and how essential they are for a healthy digestion system, our immune system, and a happy healthy body.
There are primarily two ways we get gas into our digestive tract.
One is by swallowing air when we eat or chew gum.
The other is from our microbiome.
Microbiome includes hundreds of different forms of bacteria as well as another organism called the archaea**.
All of these microbes are gas making. They eat up unused food in our large intestines like fat, fiber, and other carbohydrates we do not digest and create gas as a waste by product***.
We need this collection of Colon-Dwellers as not only are they gobbling up food we do not digest, they also make molecules that boost the immune system, protect the lining of the intestine, and help prevent infections.
They also produce short chain fatty acids that promote the growth of other beneficial bacteria and archaea.
The more fiber you eat the more you are feeding these friendly Dwellers.
It is one of those paradoxes that undigested fiber and carbohydrates actually helps our body’s ecosystem to thrive and remain healthy.
Most gas produced by the microbiome is odorless. It is mostly comprised of:
carbon dioxide (the same gas we exhale with our breath)
hydrogen (water is 2 parts hydrogen and one part oxygen H20)
methane.
What makes flatulence smelly is when sulfur is added to the mix.
Sulfur is found in many healthy vegetables such as broccoli, bok choy, kale, cauliflower, and cabbage.
Called Brassica vegetables, they are packed with a sulfur compound called Suforaphanes.
Suforaphanes are associated with reducing our risk of cancer.
Another part of this equation is that this smelly gas may also reduce excess overall air volume in our guts.
It are our healthy gut bugs that will convert the gas already created into a sulfur gas which actually reduces the overall gas volume in the gut and reduce excess flatulence.
But it does make the remaining gas a bit more odoriferous.
Not all flatulence is created equal!
If we eat in a hurry, drink with our meals, mix too many types of food in a meal, or overeat; our system will react with producing way too much gas than is normal.
An example would be finishing a full meal with fruit. Fruit needs very little digestion and wants to pass right away into the small intestines. If held up in the stomach while the rest of the meal is being processed it will create excess gas.
Anything in excess is not good for the system. This excess gas can create bloating and interfere with the health of the ecosystem.
As with so many things having the right proportions is key as to whether something is healthful or harmful.
Interesting that both the lungs and intestine are responsible for releasing waste by products such as carbon dioxide.
In Oriental medicine the lungs and intestines are paired as organs of Air. More on this in our next newsletter.
So do not fret when you pass gas. In fact smile knowing you’ve got healthy gut microbes doing their work to keep you healthy and happy.
Be aware though you might be the only one smiling.
Together Our Hands Are Joined To Heal One Another…
Alexander Gardener
The Lymph Guy
thelymphguy.com
thelymphguy@gmail.com
*report by: Purna Kashyap
** It is believed that archaea, a single cell organism is responsible for the “Great Dying” about 300 million years ago. Global warming led to organic matter covering the oceans. This provided massive amounts of food for the archaea and they multiplied. With excessive amounts of methane gas being produced, 90% of all species on Earth died.
But out of this period came the Ice Age that was the beginning of the evolutionary process for humans.
***The key is to find the right balance of carbohydrates and fiber that work for you. Too much or too little can throw the delicate balance off.
