Situation: “I could never fart or burp (I still struggle to fart) in public or even at home openly. Every time I hold my fart or burp I end up feeling gas in my stomach.  Let me tell you it’s not a good feeling. Many times I feel like burping but subconsciously over the years but we have trained our minds not to burp or fart in front of anyone. But we do fart or burp in front of our parents (at least I do) but I can’t fart in office, I can’t fart in pubs, I can’t fart in AC and I can’t fart in my fitness classes. I can only fart in an empty room. And that is the story with every woman I know.”

Farts or flatulence are often regarded as rude if done in public by most of the cultures and as a part of etiquette to look civilized.

But, did you know that even holding a fart is harmful to the body?

Farts develop from the gases contained in the gut from swallowed air when someone is eating / drinking and from the incomplete digestion of food in the gut. Production of gas in the intestines will usually increase after eating. Many a times fart is just gas without smell (usually the long releases in the morning).We release wind for a reason — it forms in the bowel and we need to get rid of it.

If you eat at 9 pm, by 5 am you’ll feel it bubbling away in your lower abdomen and may start to produce gas. Holding it back can also trigger pain and it may cause migraine, trigger hair fall, result in an unhealthy digestive system, etc. Releasing the gas eases pain and bloating, especially if you have a sensitive gut that becomes bloated regularly.

Gas needs to come out of the body – either it will come out of mouth or bottom. There is no other outlet. If you don’t allow the fart to come out the gas will circulate in the body – creating pressure on different organs of the body.

A loud burp — or belch — though according to social etiquettes “offensive” may in fact protect your body against damage from stomach acid. The sound comes from the rush of gas as it passes through the valve in the gullet at the bottom of the throat.

Burp gas is formed of a mixture of substances. As well as containing air we swallow when we bolt down food, it also contains carbon dioxide. This is produced in the stomach when the acid mixes with alkaline bile (which comes from the section of gut below the stomach).Certain fat-rich food, such as chips or creamy sauces, alcohol and smoking can exaggerate this process, called duodeno – gastric reflux.

So what should we do?

1)     Eat early dinner so that the food gets time to digest properly.

2)     Drink water as much as you feel like – there is no mandatory limit of how much water you should drink

3)     Fart – make an habit to fart, say sorry before farting and say sorry after farting and explain them how farting is important.

4)     Burp if you feel the urge. Let the gas go out of your body. If you feel embarrassed in farting or burping in public – stand up – go out – fart or burp and come back to your seat.

5)     Change your outlook towards people who burp or fart in front of you. Complement them and appreciate them that they dare to fart or burp in public and are not scared of what other people will think of them.