Gas - flatulence

Alternative Names

Home Care

• Avoid beans, cabbage, and carbonated beverages
• Avoid gum chewing
• Chew your food thoroughly
• Eat more slowly
• Relax while you eat
• Walk for 10 - 15 minutes after eating

When to Contact a Medical Professional

Call your doctor if:

• Your have other symptoms in addition to gas, like abdominal or rectal pain, heartburn, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, or weight loss.
• You have oily, foul-smelling, or bloody stools.

Your doctor will perform a physical examination with special attention to your abdomen, and ask questions about your symptoms, such as:

• What is your diet like?
• Has it recently changed?
• What foods do you eat commonly?
• What foods have you eaten recently?
• Have you increased the fiber in your diet?
• How fast do you eat, chew, and swallow?
• Would you say that your gas is mild or severe?
• Does your gas seem to be related to eating milk products or other specific foods?
• What seems to make your gas better?
• What medications do you take?
• Do you have other symptoms like abdominal pain, diarrhea, early satiety (premature fullness after meals), bloating, or weight loss?

Diagnostic tests that may be performed include:

• Abdominal CT scan
• Abdominal ultrasound
• Barium enema x-ray
• Barium swallow x-ray
• Blood studies such as CBC or blood differential
• Sigmoidoscopy
• Upper endoscopy (EGD)

References

Birrer RB. Irritable bowel syndrome. Dis Mon. 2002;48:105-143.

Lovelace HY. Diagnosis, symptoms, and calcium intakes of individuals with self-reported lactose intolerance. J Am Coll Nutr. 2005;24:51-57.

Andrès E. Food-cobalamin malabsorption in the elderly. Am J Med. 2002;113:351-352.