Thread: A gassy little problem!

Originally Posted by Elianae

What's G&T?

Gin and tonic...my favourite tipple when I'm not drinking pinot noir or riesling (NZ of course).

Seriously, cutting out yeasty foods including bread and beer, cheeses as well as garlic and onion and yes, cabbage, cauliflower, beans, (lentils to a lesser extent), apples especially new season, grapes, eggs etc made a huge difference.

It's fine to let 'er rip, but you don't really want to clear the neighbourhood just because you've dropped your guts...!
I hadn't thought of charcoal tablets, great idea!

Originally Posted by halftruths

Okay, this is embarassing, but I figured that we'll bring up just about anything in Bhuz, so here goes...



I have toxic gas - the silent-but-deadly variety. Seriously, dude, it's bad. I can clear a room with it, and while my fellow dancers have been good about it and making light of how freaking awful it is with light-hearted teasing, it is bloody embarassing! Ido my best to make it to an isolated area of the studio when it's about to hit. I don't always make it, though. I don't want to subject my dance comrades to it, but sometimes I've only got about 1/4 of a second's worth of warning.



I am not lactose intolerant, I have a very balanced diet, get plenty of whole grains and fibre, lots of fruit and veg, etc etc. I don't have any food intolerances (although I don't handle the grease overload from fast food and crappy restaurant food very well). The only thing that I and a couple other savvy individuals I dance with can relate it to is stress. A really bad bout of job-related stress rotted my gut out, and while I got over the last episode and haven't had much trouble since, it's back! ..cr.:

So have any of you tried remedies like probiotic supplementation or activated charcoal tablets? I just started probiotic supplements today and am crossing my fingers, but I need a little hope here!

Cut sugar completely out of your diet. It feeds all kinds of colonic nasties and does you no good at all.

I'm laughing my ass off here! ..l;,

Seriously, as good as all the fruit and veges are for the diet, (and I know this is different for different people etc), both myself and my bestie have found that lots of veges, especially anything from the Brassica oleracea family (think broccoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, cabbage, collard greens etc) , really power up the ol' gas factory - they've been shown to not only increase 'volume', but also the 'pungency'!,f::

Apparently spices like cumin, coriander and caraway are supposed to be able to (partly) counteract the effects...

Thanks for all the pointers, folks!

The probiotics I've been taking have actually been working quite well. I'm about halfway through the bottle of suppliments, and I'm noticing a definite improvement. Thinking about it, this makes sense, as the problem was definitely stress induced and apparently long periods of considerable stress can wreak havock on the digestive tract and kill off the flora that keeps this sort of stuff in check. Soon the blame for "who dropped the bomb" during rehersals will no longer be automatically assignable to me! BWA HA HAA!

(Incidentally, I also monitored for food triggers and did some trial elimination of possible food culprits, but none were found.)

Originally Posted by Lauren_

Your body may have trouble processing those whole grains. I have the same problem, it's not an allergy exactly but I'm somewhat :fg: intolerant of wheat.

Taking GasX helps, but mostly backing down on my bread/pasta consumption helps most. Also can't eat things like Slimfast or protein bars without taking a GasX.

Same here. I can eat whole grains by themselves, or with nuts. But tuna/eggs with bread or whole grain crackers?.w.:..c::Oh hell no.

Also, for as long as I can remember I've eaten an apple a day. Then about a week ago I started suffering from constipation and trapped gas. I cut out the apples and noticed a difference the next day. Same with a lot of raw veggies. I think our bodies are always changing and can start reacting differently to things we've eaten all our lives. (I'm still having apple withdraws!)

I can only eat really sweet apples - as soon as they are a bit sour, everybody around me will know I have eaten that apple....

And an odd observation: Sometimes it depends on how food is cooked.
Last time I spent two weeks in India, I ate whatever was served (we stayed at a private house and had our own cook, everything was vegetarian). Also wheat chapatis and some of the "dangerous" vegetables. No problems at all.

MEISSOUN

if you are reacting to legumes, try adding asoefetida (aka hing) to your recipes- kind of garlicy-tasting (sometimes use it to replace garlic & onions in a recipe) and it helps you digest those beans, etc- life saver at our house (almost typed out house )

also, try chewing slower- I read an article in my midwife's office that said most of what we pass is actually just from swallowing too much air- we tried slowing down our meals & it really has helped.

I was watching some educational show a couple of weeks ago and they were measuring gas produced by farts. They had a male & female wear what they called fart pants. They basically looked like rubber bike shorts. They had a tube coming out the top of them and that was attached to a plastic back pack looking thing. At the end of the day the gas container was removed and pushed under to water to measure the gas. He had over 3 liters and she had just under. That was considered normal...farting 3 liters of gas is normal? Anyway...just had to share as I was truly amused :-)

If you consume a lot of fiber and do not balance it out with plenty of water, it can actually have the opposite affect (backs everything up). Are you drinking enough is the main question? I really have to watch the amount of fiber/whole grains I eat b/c I know I don't drink enough.
Fiber bars and whole grain pasta = toxic ass for me. Hahahah. I stay clear of that stuff.

Lotsa people get this problem when dancing. I have an unwritten rule to avoid eating before class (several hours before). Another very strange but simple rule is to eat your food slower. Most people (especially busy women like us) don't realise how fast they eat their food. Apparently you should spend 30 seconds chewing every mouthfull! When you do not chew your food properly, much air is swallowed with the food and you'll either burp it up or eventually... well the other end will take care of it. Drinking too much is also bad, I think it's because the bladder gets full and presses against everything down there?

I also have your problem and it's nothing to do with my diet, it is terrible when you are teaching the class so I make sure that I follow my little rules because I know my students don't pay for that kind of tuition! ..l;,

Anyhoo, that's just my 2 cents, it's also a simple and cost free thing to try! Good luck, I feel your pain!!

Originally Posted by basil1

...They had a male & female wear what they called fart pants. They basically looked like rubber bike shorts. They had a tube coming out the top of them and that was attached to a plastic back pack looking thing. ...

Thanks for putting that image in my head, needed a good laugh!..l;,..l;,

Qamar

I tried to find a picture of the apparatus but unfortunately could not. I did find a link to the story though ..l;,

BBC - Science & Nature - Fart Pants

Originally Posted by Qamar60

Thanks for putting that image in my head, needed a good laugh!..l;,..l;,

Qamar

Originally Posted by basil1

I tried to find a picture of the apparatus but unfortunately could not. I did find a link to the story though ..l;,

BBC - Science & Nature - Fart Pants

I love that they have a link to a recipe for lentil curry on that page...l;,

Originally Posted by basil1

I was watching some educational show a couple of weeks ago and they were measuring gas produced by farts. They had a male & female wear what they called fart pants. They basically looked like rubber bike shorts. They had a tube coming out the top of them and that was attached to a plastic back pack looking thing. At the end of the day the gas container was removed and pushed under to water to measure the gas. He had over 3 liters and she had just under. That was considered normal...farting 3 liters of gas is normal? Anyway...just had to share as I was truly amused :-)

I've seen that. It was on Myth Busters.

If I have oatmeal (the cooked stuff, not the instant kind) for 2 mornings in a row - watch out! It's time to take the charcoal tabs. It took forever (at least it felt that way) to figure out what the culprit was. Now I have to keep at least 48 hours between bowls of oatmeal. And Crystal Light - ugh...that stuff really does a number on me (now I avoid artificial sweetners like the plague)

Originally Posted by HubicRuzz

I've seen that. It was on Myth Busters.

.w.: I'm crazy about that tv show! But, I've missed that one. Drat! ..c::

Qamar

If you have no food intolerences, and are sound and healthy...
I might say it's from fear/stess. Strong emotions can produce such a reaction in the body. I know because I have this happen to me as well

I use accupressure point therapy massage that really does the trick.When you start to feel nervous, try this one....



On one hand, find the webbing between thumb and index finger. Move back just a little and feel the fleshy mound of skin ajacent to the webbed skin. Apply pressure using your thumb and index finger, hold for about a minute. Then move back to the center of the webbing, squeezing and pressing toward the bone of the index finger, hold another minute, then repeat on other hand. Keep doing it until you feel the tension in your body release.
Caution: DO NOT do this one if pregnant.

Here is a website with some others that work well too....I hope you feel better!

Acupressure and Reflexology for Anxiety.

[QUOTE=meissoun;583886]I think it's different things for each person.
I had a fart problem for years - then I switched to eating only food that's supposed to be good for my blood type (I'm a 0) and voilà, it stopped! Now I can always tell if I had something that I can't digest well....

Yes! This is the hands down ultimate solution to your problem that I was gonna mention thank you meissoun!
There is a book you can get cheap on Amazon called "Eat right for your blood type" and in short it basically explains that depending on your blood type, there are certain foods you should avoid because your body doesn't handle it well. Read it! It will change your life!

Originally Posted by roxxanne

Also when you eat fruit can be an issue-according to Fit for Life you should not eat fruit on a full stomach-especially if you have poor digestion because the fruit putrifies in your stomach. This program suggests you eat fruit on an empty stomach in the morning.

I hadn't heard about this! And to think I've always eaten fruit after a meal as a replacement for something loaded with sugar. ..cr.: I'll have to remember that Roxxanne.

Forgot to add that taking one or two peppermint oil capsules about 20 minutes before eating does help. I like the ones by Pepogest by Nature's Way, you don't get that after taste with them. Another simple suggestion is don't drink with a straw, amazing the amount of air you suck in and swallow when using a straw!