WARNING: Educational and scientific content follows. If looking for fart jokes then you should look elsewhere.
...continued from "Flatulence 1"
Remedies
Dietary
Certain spices have been reported to counteract the production of intestinal gas, most notably the closely related cumin, coriander, caraway and others such as ajwain, turmeric, asafoetida (hing), epazote, and kombu kelp (a Japanese seaweed). Most starches, including potatoes, corn, noodles, and wheat, produce gas as they are broken down in the large intestine. Rice is the only starch that does not cause gas. The amount of water-soluble oligosaccharide in beans that may contribute to production of intestinal gas is reputed to be reduced by a long period of soaking followed by boiling, but at a cost of also leaching out other water-soluble nutrients.[citation needed] Also, intestinal gas can be reduced by fermenting the beans, and making them less gas-inducing, and/or by cooking them in the liquor from a previous batch. Some legumes also stand up to prolonged cooking, which can help break down the oligosaccharides into simple sugars. On the other hand, fermented bean products such as miso are less likely to produce as much intestinal gas. Fermentative lactic acid bacteria such as Lactobacillus casei and Lactobacillus plantarum reduce flatulence in human intestinal tract.
Probiotics (live yoghurt, kefir, etc.) are reputed to reduce flatulence when used to restore balance to the normal intestinal flora. Live (bioactive) yogurt contains, among other lactic bacteria, Lactobacillus acidophilus which may be useful in reducing flatulence. L. acidophilus may make the intestinal environmnent more acidic, supporting a natural balance of the fermentative processes. L. acidophilus is available in supplements (some believe non-dairy is best). Prebiotics, which generally are non-digestible oligosaccharides, such as fructooligosaccharide, generally increase flatulence in a similar way as described for lactose intolerance.
Medicinal activated charcoal tablets have also been reported as effective in reducing both odor and quantity of flatus when taken immediately before food that is likely to cause flatulence later.
Pharmacological
Digestive enzyme supplements may significantly reduce the amount of flatulence caused by some components of foods not being digested by the body and thereby promoting the action of microbes in the small and large intestines. It has been suggested that alpha-galactosidase enzymes, which can digest certain complex sugars, are effective in reducing the volume and frequency of flatus. The enzymes alpha-galactosidase, lactase, amylase, lipase, protease, cellulase, glucoamylase, invertase, malt diastase, pectinase, and bromelain are available, either individually or in combination blends, in commercial products.
The antibiotic rifaximin, often used to treat diarrhea caused by the microorganism E. coli, may reduce both the production of intestinal gas and the frequency of flatus events.
While not affecting the production of the gases themselves, surfactants (agents which lower surface tension) can reduce the disagreeable sensations associated with flatulence, by aiding the dissolution of the gases into liquid and solid fecal matter. Preparations containing simethicone reportedly operate by promoting the coalescence of smaller bubbles into larger ones more easily passed from the body, either by burping or flatulence. Such preparations do not decrease the total amount of gas generated in or passed from the colon, but make the bubbles larger and thereby allowing them to be passed more easily.
Odour from flatulence, caused by the intestinal bacteria called microflora in the bowel, can be treated by taking bismuth subgallate, available over-the-counter as Devrom. Bismuth subgallate is commonly used by individuals who have had ostomy surgery, bariatric surgery, fecal incontinence and irritable bowel syndrome.
Post-Release
In 1998, Chester "Buck" Weimer of Pueblo, Colorado received a patent for the first undergarment that contained a replaceable charcoal filter. The undergarments are air-tight and provide a pocketed escape hole in which a charcoal filter can be inserted. In 2001 Mr Weimer received the Ig Nobel Prize for Biology for his invention.
A similar product was released in 2002, but rather than an entire undergarment, consumers are able to purchase an insert similar to a pantiliner that contains activated charcoal. The inventors, Myra and Brian Conant of Mililani, Hawaii still claim on their website to have discovered the undergarment product in 2002 (eight years after Chester Weimer filed for a patent for his product), but state that their tests "concluded" that they should release an insert instead.
Health Effects
As a normal body function, the action of flatulence is an important signal of bowel activity, and hence is often documented by nursing staff following surgical or other treatment of patients. However, symptoms of excessive flatulence can indicate the presence of irritable bowel syndrome or some other organic disease. In particular, the sudden occurrence of excessive flatulence together with the onset of new symptoms provide reason for seeking further medical examination.
Flatulence is not poisonous; it is a natural component of various intestinal contents. However, discomfort may develop from the build-up of gas pressure if an attempt is made to refrain from releasing them. In theory, pathological distension of the bowel, leading to constipation, could result if a person holds in flatulence.
Not all flatus is released from the body via the anus. When the partial pressure of any gas component of the intestinal lumen is higher than its partial pressure in the blood, that component enters into the bloodstream of the intestinal wall by the process of diffusion. As the blood passes through the lungs, this gas can diffuse back out of the blood and be exhaled. If a person holds in flatus during daytime, it will often be released during sleep involuntarily when the body is relaxed. Some flatus can become trapped within the feces during its compaction and will exit the body, still contained within the fecal matter, during the process of defecation.
Society & Culture
In many cultures, human flatulence in public is regarded as embarrassing but, depending on context, can also be considered humorous. People will often strain to hold in the passing of gas when in polite company, or position themselves to conceal the noise and scent. In other cultures[examples needed], it may be no more embarrassing than coughing. In one instance in the United States, however, two teenaged boys were kicked off of a school bus for farting.
While the act of passing flatus in said cultures is generally considered to be an unfortunate occurrence in public settings, flatulence may, in casual circumstances and especially among children, be used as either a humorous supplement to a joke ("pull my finger"), or as a comic activity in and of itself. The social acceptability of flatulence-based humor in entertainment and the mass media varies over the course of time and between cultures. The humorous insult "I fart in your general direction" from the comedy film Monty Python and the Holy Grail has been reprinted on several posters, t-shirts, and hats.
In January 2011, the Malawi Minister of Justice, George Chaponda, said that Air Fouling Legislation would make public farting illegal in his country. The media had a field day with punning headlines when they reported the story. Later, the minister withdrew his statement. In 2008, a farting application for the iPhone raked in nearly $10,000 in one day.
Environmental Impact
Flatulence is often blamed as a significant source of greenhouse gases, owing to the erroneous belief that the methane released by livestock is in the flatus. While livestock account for around 20% of global methane emissions, 90–95% of that is released by exhaling or burping. Only 1–2% of global methane emissions come from livestock flatus.
Since New Zealand produces large amounts of agricultural product it is in the unique position of having high methane emissions from livestock compared to other greenhouse gas sources. The New Zealand government is a signatory to the Kyoto Protocol and therefore attempts are being made to reduce greenhouse emissions. To achieve this an agricultural emissions research levy was proposed, which promptly became known as a "fart tax" or "flatulence tax". It encountered opposition from farmers, farming lobby groups and opposition politicians.
In Fresno, California, a system to harvest methane by-product from dairy cattle and convert it to usable bio-gas is being used, in a partnership with Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) and BioEnergy Solutions, in which BioEnergy Solutions sells the methane harvested from cows to PG&E, who then converts the methane to usable bio-gas, which is very similar to natural gas.
Farting at Will
Historical comment on the ability to fart at will is observed as early as Saint Augustine's The City of God (5th century AD). Augustine mentions men who "have such command of their bowels, that they can break wind continuously at will, so as to produce the effect of singing". The fact that mankind in general has lost this ability he attributes to the first sin of Adam and Eve and its consequences with respect to body control. Intentional passing of gas and its use as entertainment for others appear to have been somewhat well known in pre-modern Europe, according to mentions of it in medieval and later literature, including Rabelais.
Le Pétomane ("the Fartiste") was a famous French performer in the 19th century who, as well as many professional farters before him, did flatulence impressions and held shows. The performer Mr. Methane carries on le Pétomane's tradition today. Also, a 2002 film Thunderpants revolves around a boy named Patrick Smash who has an ongoing flatulence problem since he was a newborn baby. He eventually overcame his problems and fulfilled his dreams including being an astronaut.
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