GAS/FLATULENCE

Flatulence is the term given to excessive passing wind I and therefore sometimes it is also called excessive flatulence. Passing gas is actually a perfectly normal bodily function, hut in some cases its severity becomes so high that it can be Usrmed as a disease. About 30 to 40% of all people worldwide suffer from problems with flatulence. A survey would show otherwise because most people with gas problems would refrain from speaking about it in public, •*vcn with their own physicians owing to embarrassment. A proper diet is indeed the best way to get rid of this tight-spot.

DEFINITION OF GAS/FLATULENCE

Ai II lyamaan is the Sanskrit word for flatulence. A flatulent feels the urge to pass wind repeatedly. The gas by the person could be noiseless and odorless, or it has noisy and with an offensive odor. The gas that is expelled during adhyamaan is called as a flatus. In slang English, the act of passing wind is called as farting, though this word could be considered offensive in some circles, as much as the act itself. Flatulence is a normal physical activity and happens in every person, especially after a heavy meal. Hence, the medical term flatulence is applied to only those people who suffer extremely from this condition, i.e. they have no control on their biological urges of passing wind.

CAUSES OF GAS/FLATULENCE

Gas/Flatulence is caused due to abnormal agni in a person. Agni means fire. A person abnormal agni is an unhealthy person. Sometimes the agni of a person is vitiated. This can happen due to the following causes:-

•    Distortion of the intelligence of the person;
•    Wrong coordination of sense organs and their objects
•    Vagaries of weather and time.

Any of these three can impair the pitta dosha of the person. This vitiation of the pitta dosha is called as the amala pitta. This is the chief causative agent of all digestive problems with the human system. In medical terms, flatulence is caused due to the inability of digesting all the food that is consumed by the person. The food that remains undigested is passed on to the colon. Here the fermentation of the leftover carbohydrates is carried out by the colonic bacteria, which leads to the formation of intestinal gas.

•People also swallow air directly during different activities

that they perform. Whenever you eat or drink anything, you also take in a fair amount of air. This air passes out as wind. Generally such air that passes out is odorless and noiseless.
•Some foods contain more gas producing capacity than others. Beans are notorious in this aspect. The complex sugars contained in the beans are not digestible by the intestines. The undigested part passes out as wind throughout the day.

•    There are many people who are lactose intolerant. These people cannot digest the lactose sugars in milk and other milk products. Hence the undigested lactose accumulates in the persons stomach as gas, along with other problems such as bloating of the stomach, cramps and even diarrhoea.

•    Many medicinal drugs are the cause of flatulence. Antibiotics like narcotics, calcium channel blockers, etc. can cause flatulence in the person.