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Conditions

Flatulence

Doctor examining a patient's bloated stomach with suspected Flatulence

We fart when we’re awake, we fart when we’re asleep, and we even fart when we’re dead. So, if you’ve been told that the Queen doesn’t fart and that women’s gusty contributions are accompanied by angelic harp music (and smell like flowers), don’t believe a word of it! On average, most people pass gas 15 times a day, but anything up to 40 times in one day is considered normal. The food we eat is digested and absorbed in the small intestine. And wind is produced by the digestive system as enzymes and bacteria break down carbohydrates and proteins in your food. Of course, certain foods can provide a little extra firepower, such as beans, cauliflower, cabbage, kidney beans and artichokes. In such instances, it might be wise to distance yourself from your nearest and dearest.

What the Men in White Coats Say

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Im 20 years old and often constipated and pass an abnormal amound of wind help





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My husband suffers with alot of wind from both ends! he is always really bloated after eating the smallest mealand passes wind all the time alot of the time without warning. Hes getting very embarresed by it now is there a diet factor that could be causing this?





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For the last few years, i have been having an increasing problem with flatulence. Some days (and nights) it is almost constant every few minutes, and always smells bad. I eat a balanced diet and it doesn't seem to matter what i eat, it's the same. I don't have any other problems with bloating or constipation, and my stools are normal, (so i don't think it's IBS). Despite this i have had the usual laxatives and so forth from the doctor, which unsuprisingly has had no effect. On the Embarrassing Bodies show, the doctors seem to take conditions seriously, and refer patients to specialists if they can't make a quick diagnosis. Sadly, this doesn't seem to be the case with local GP's. I've heard of people being sacked from their jobs and even committing suicide because of this problem, so it should be taken more seriously. Everything you read about flatulence attributes it to the intake of air, fizzy drinks, not chewing food enough, but i think with me (and some of the other people above), that it is a result of another unknown gastroenterological condition.





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Hi there, my name is Andy, 49 years old and for the last 30 years ive suffered with IBS. ive taken everything in the book there is to take for a cure and nothing is helping, when it frist started i was finding myself rushing to the loo every 5mins to pass stool, back then it was only as big as a rabbit dropping, i had to give up football when i was younger because everytime i ran i throught i was going to poo myself because of this. over the years i've learnt to live with this. stool is a full flow, sometimes soft, hard or runny, ive had the camera into my lower and upper bowl, and they said everything was fine apart from me having Diverticula disease as well lol. my maine problem is gas, Flatulence as you call it, ive suffered really bad with this for years now the same agen back and fourth to the doctors and still know joy, i can fart in my sleep and when i wake its never ending, ive also told my doctor that when i do pass stool i get paines in my head, as in bad headaches cause im filling up with wind, the doctor just laughed cause he'd never heard of this in his 30 years of practis, ive just had to go back to my doctor because the wind as taken another stage in my life, because of the wind now and not all the time, what i eat is sometimes being past straight through now with out digesting because of the mass buildup of wind, can you help me with this cause i need help now starting to worry me now.





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i suffer from uncontrolable flatulence,bloating and constipation, my doctor thinks it might be ibs and prescribed mebeverine but its not helping. my stomach swells so much that i look pregnant and my clothes dont fit. ive had the camera up the back passage and this was normal. help, i dont know what else to do





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I am female and this applies to me too. When i was in a very stressful job i was always having explosive diarrhoea in the morning but since stopping work i am always constipated. I rarely eat processed food, eat loads of fruit, veg and salad and drink plenty. I exercise daily. I pass wind constantly (loudly, smelly and sometimes follow through with poo or mucous. My husband is fed up after over 30 yrs of suffering and i am too. Dietician told me my diet is fantastic and consultant said it was IBS - i have had a barium enema. I do notice i am bloated worse with wheat so i keep that to a minimum in my diet. Don't know what else i can do! HELP!

about a year ago i was told i had IBS recently theres been 2 occasions where i thought i had flatulence but i lost control and didnt pass wind but soiled myself, without any warning. I have loose bowls everyday and always find its urgent in the mornings. I have alot of family histry with bowls problems from cancer to crohns, to colitus. please help. lisa





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i suffer from uncontrolable flatulence,bloating and constipation, my doctor thinks it might be ibs and prescribed mebeverine but its not helping. my stomach swells so much that i look pregnant and my clothes dont fit. ive had the camera up the back passage and this was normal. help, i dont know what else to do





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I break wind literally every couple of minutes. There is never any smell but are very very loud if i just let it go. I hold it when in company but then tend to get stomach ache temporarily. Is the constant wind breaking a sign of something? Thanks Steve W





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I have been constipated for about 2 years now ever since everyday my bottom half makes loud noises like an explosion; this sounds like a fart but dows not smell, but still leaves me really embarrassed as a can not stop it please help... Tried everything to get rid I the constipation.





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Is holding farts in bad for you?





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It looks like no one else has asked this question, so please fill in the rest of your details below.





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Content supplied by NHS Choices

Flatulence is the medical term for passing gas from the digestive system and out of the anus (back passage). Flatulence is more commonly known as ‘passing wind’ or ‘farting’. Read More »

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