The 4 reasons your farts smell so bad – and how to prevent it
SILENT but deadly - the worst kind of farts.
And when there’s no dog to blame, you’re left wondering whether to just fess up.
Farts can smell hideous one day, and barely noticeable the next - a mere puff in the wind.
Bad smells only apply to about one per cent of the gas that people expel, most of which is almost odour-free, according to Medical News Today.
For some people, it may feel like every time they let rip they evacuate the room.
Here we explore the reasons for stinky farts and how to stop them occurring.
Just as a warning, the NHS says: “Do not self-diagnose. See a GP if you're worried about your farting.”
1. Foods you eat
Probably the most common culprit for smelly farts is the food you’ve eaten.
Your stomach struggles to break down certain foods as they move through the bowel, causing gas.
For example, beans contain sugars and fibre that our bodies have a hard time digesting.
But they are also beneficial in the diet - hence the saying “beans, beans, they’re good for your heart, the more you eat, the more you fart”.
But if these foods create more gas, what is it that makes it smell?
Alex Glover, Senior Nutritionist at , explained the chemical that leads to a pong is hydrogen sulfide.
This is produced when gut bacteria break down sulphur in foods.
He said: “They can take a long time to digest in the gut which leaves them to ferment.
“Fatty meats in particular are rich in methionine which is an ammonia acid containing sulphur."
Rob explained that hydrogen sulphide gas gives farts "that delightful rotten egg odour";.
But it's not just meat eaters that are affected.
Other sulphur foods that can make you wind a bit whiffy are:
- Broccoli
- Brussels sprouts
- Cauliflower
- Cabbage
- Garlic
- Onions
- Legumes (beans, peas, chickpeas)
- Nuts and dried fruit
- Beer and wine
Rob also said to watch your intake of artificial sweeteners in diet drinks, sweets and gum. These are sugar alcohols and are healthier than the real deal.
But Rob said: “As with other culprits of bad gas these are not fully absorbed in the body travelling to the colon where they contribute to foul-smelling gas.”
What to do about it: Alex said: "Start by cutting down on eggs, meat and cruciferous vegetables like cabbage and sprouts.
"Foods like onions also contain high amounts of fermentable fibres which can lead to excess gas.”
The NHS says to reduce gas generally, you should eat smaller meals, more often, and drink or chew food slowly in order to prevent smelly flatulence.
Eating too fast can cause you to swallow too much air, which in turn, causes gas.
2. Food intolerance
A food intolerance - such as to dairy or gluten - can cause smelly gas.
You would likely also experience symptoms like indigestion, bloating, constipation and diarrhoea.
Rob said: “Food intolerances can leave you with bad-smelling wind if you eat the culprit food.
“An example here is lactose intolerance where people lack the enzyme retried to break it down.
“This means lactose travels to the gut indigested where it is fed upon by the bacteria leaving you with smelly gas.”
Millions of people are intolerant to lactose - a natural sugar found in dairy products such as cheese, milk and ice cream.
It doesn’t help that dairy foods are also higher in sulphur content.
Meanwhile, coeliac disease is an autoimmune disorder when the body reacts to the digestion of gluten, found in bread, pasta, cereal, and many more common foods.
The digestive system will react adversely to the protein, causing severe abdominal pain and excessive bloating.
How to fix it: The best thing to do would be to avoid the foods you are intolerant to, or at least when you are not able to deal with the consequences.
But food intolerances can be severely uncomfortable and affect quality of life.
If you think you are affected, see your GP who will likely ask you to keep a food diary and possibly conduct more tests to lead to a diagnosis.
3. Constipation
When you let off a stinker, one of the main questions your poor victims around you will ask is, “do you need to go to the toilet?”.
Often they aren’t wrong - the potential cause of your smelly farts could be constipation.
Constipation occurs when stool builds up in the colon or large intestine but isn’t able to exit.
The buildup of stool in the colon often leads to the creation of smelly gases - which may also cause bloating and discomfort.
This may occur even if you don’t feel you’ve eaten gassy foods.
Bread, pasta and pizza are not known for creating pongy gas.
However, if no fibre is eaten with them - and fibre is the key ingredient to regular stools - you’ll have difficulty keeping the bowels moving, and things might get smelly.
How to fix it: To avoid constipation, drink plenty of water, increase fibre in your diet, and exercise regularly.
4. Medication
Excessive or smelly wind can also be a side effect of some medicines, so if you have recently been given a new prescription, that could explain your symptoms.
But even some over-the-counter meds, like ibuprofen, are a risky game.
Medicines that can cause gas include:
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- Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS), like ibuprofen
- Some laxatives
- Antifungal medicines
- Statins
How to fix it: The NHS says do not stop or change your medicine without speaking to a GP first.