If you’re prone to producing smelly bottom burps, it’s actually a sign of good health.
Gastroenterologist Dr Myron Brand said the “smelly odour is not bad, it’s just a function of what you’re eating and what your bacteria is doing inside your gastrointestinal tract”.
Some people may have strong-smelling farts, while others are more toned down - and this is completely normal.
“Everyone is different,” Dr Brand told Thrillist. “Foul smell just means the carbohydrates you consume are being malabsorbed - it’s fermented.”
“The end product of fermentation in our gastrointestinal tract is gas - carbon dioxide, hydrogen, or methane. And it’s all made from bacteria fermentation,” said Dr Brand, from Connecticut Gastroenterology Consultants.
He added that the healthier you eat, the more likely your farts will smell.
Foods rich in fibre such as broccoli, sprouts and cabbage help to boost gut bacteria and help you naturally pass gas. Some foods, including red meat and milk, also have a high sulphur composition, resulting in the smell being rather unpleasant.
This is particularly bad news for women, whose farts have been found to smell worse than men because they have more concentrated sulphur in their bodies.
If you would like to fart less often - and make them less “noxious” - Dr Brand recommends switching up your diet and favouring more proteins over carbohydrates. Consuming probiotics or following a low-FODMAP diet; where you cut out a group of short-chain carbohydrates: oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides and polyols; may also help.
It’s worth noting that while your flatulence issues may be a result of eating healthily, if your farts are particularly terrible you should probably see a doctor.
Either that or invest in some odour-eliminating pants.
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