Is gas a symptom of
chewing gum?
Q. I get a lot of gas and
someone told me it would help if I stopped chewing gum all the time. That
sounds like bunk to me. What do you think?
A. It’s not bunk. When you chew
gum, you swallow more often and some of what you’re swallowing is air. In
addition, artificial sweeteners, such as sorbitol, which are found in some gums
can give you gas.
But,
what exactly, is gas?
Most
people produce between a pint and a half-gallon of gas each day.
Oxygen,
carbon dioxide and nitrogen from swallowed air make up a large part of gas or “flatus.”
Fermenting foods in the colon produce hydrogen and methane as well as carbon
dioxide and oxygen.
The
unpleasant odor of some flatus is the result of trace gases, such as hydrogen
sulfide, indole and skatole, which are produced when foods decompose in the
colon.
We
release gas upwardly by belching and downwardly by flatulence. When we swallow
air and don’t release it by belching, the air will work its way down and out.
About half the gas passed from the rectum comes from swallowed air.
For
the record, normal people pass gas about ten times each day. Twenty times daily
is still considered normal.
Some
people suffer from bloating caused by gas. Most who suffer from bloating do not
generate excessive gas, but they don’t move swallowed air fast enough.
Sometimes, gas in these people moves in the wrong direction, returning to the
stomach. The gas accumulates and produces discomfort. Some feel more discomfort
than others because they don’t tolerate intestinal stretching well.
Another
major cause of gas is partially digested food passing from the small intestines
to the colon, where bacteria process the food further and produce gases.
Discomfort
from gas is usually nothing to worry about. However, you should go to a doctor
if you have other symptoms such as abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea,
constipation, weight loss, bleeding from the gastrointestinal tract and
sometimes heartburn.
Here
are some ways to alleviate bloating:
• Eat
multiple small meals during the day instead of two or three large ones.
• Chew
food thoroughly and don’t gulp. Eat slowly.
• Don’t
eat when you’re nervous or hurried.
• Don’t
smoke; it makes you swallow more air.
•
Avoid gassy foods. Some of the usual suspects are beans, onions, broccoli,
brussels sprouts, cauliflower, artichokes, asparagus, pears, apples, peaches,
prunes, whole-wheat bread, bran, beer, soda, ice cream.
• Cut
down on fatty foods. Fat slows digestion, giving food more time to ferment.
• If
you take a fiber supplement, try cutting back and then build up your intake
gradually.
•
Reduce consumption of dairy products. Or try using products that help digest
milk sugar (lactose).
• Use
over-the-counter aids. Add products such as Beano to high-fiber foods to help
reduce the amount of gas they produce. Try using simethicone, which helps break
up the bubbles in gas. Charcoal tablets also may help.