THE TRUTH BEHIND FLATULENCE

THE TRUTH BEHIND FLATULENCE To understand why flatulence occurs, one must look at the human body like it's a small factory. The gastrointestinal tract works as a unit. Once food reaches the stomach, all nutrients are broken down into smaller components (amino acids, fatty acids and glucose) before being absorbed in the small intestine. When food does not get absorbed into the intestinal wall, it cannot enter the bloodstream. Indigestible food and liquids are sent down the track where they reach the large colon (bowel) as waste for liquid reabsorption. It is there, in the large intestine, that gases are formed.

Different bacteria in the bowel have a symbiotic relationship with the body -- in some cases, actually doing more good than harm. The large colon contains a variety of digestive enzymes that feed off unabsorbed nutrients. In the case of flatulence, foreign enzymes know as "gas enzymes" consume undigested nutrients by breaking their chemical bonds. This process produces gases and the "end" result is the dog getting blamed for something he probably did not do. Enzymes burn food on a molecular level so farts are like exhaust fumes, and like all efficient factories, once an agent has been broken down, it produces gas. Hey! It has to go somewhere, right?