As your stomach gurgles, cramps, and expands, and you pass gas, you may wonder what could be causing all this flatulence. If you're passing gas and burping more than 25 times a day, and this is affecting your comfort and digestive health, it might be time to do something about it.
That “something” may include making changes in your diet and perhaps talking to your doctor about what else can be done to control your excessive gas. But first, you need to figure out what's causing this problem, and see if you can bring it under control.
Causes of Excessive Gas: Food
Have you ever eaten a meal or a particular food that bothers your digestive system and afterward experienced painful gas and bloating for hours? Foods are a major cause of excessive gas. Beans are a well-known culprit, but there are many others.
Each food affects everyone differently, but here are some that commonly cause flatulence and burping. You may need to avoid them to manage your excessive gas:
- Milk and dairy products
- Apricots, raw apples, and bananas
- Prunes and prune juice
- Cabbage and sauerkraut
- Carrots, celery, corn, and peas
- Foods with artificial sweeteners, such as sorbitol
- Oat bran
In general, foods with natural sugars, high-fiber foods, and starchy foods are all likely to cause gas because of the way the body breaks them down, or has difficulty breaking them down. Pay attention to the foods you eat and how your body reacts. If you notice that you seem to suffer from bad gas after eating the foods listed above or any others for that matter, cut back on them to prevent gas.
Causes of Excessive Gas: Swallowing Too Much Air
You probably don't sit and gulp mouthfuls of air, but whether or not you realize it, you're ingesting a lot of air when you eat and drink. Fifty percent of gas is caused by swallowing too much air.
Here are a few common activities that can cause you to swallow too much air and may lead to problems with gas:
- Chewing gum
- Sucking on candies or food
- Eating or drinking very quickly
- Wearing dentures that are too loose
- Drinking from a straw
- Drinking carbonated beverages
- Swallowing often, which may happen when you're nervous
Causes of Excessive Gas: Medications and Health Conditions
Excessive gas may be a side effect of certain medications, such as acarbose (Precose), a medication used to treat type 2 diabetes, or those that contain the sugars sorbitol or lactulose. Fiber supplements may also cause flatulence.
Excessive gas may also be a result of many health conditions. These include:
- Lactose intolerance
- Celiac disease (intolerance to gluten)
- Irritable bowel syndrome
- Gastroesophageal reflux disease
- Peptic ulcer disease
- Crohn's disease
There are many things that can cause excessive gas. See if you can connect it to a particular food, and reduce activities like chewing gum that promote air in your belly. If your excessive gas doesn't improve with those changes, check with your doctor to rule out another cause.