It’s a subject we rarely talk about. Except, perhaps, in naughty jokes. But Humans ‘pass gas’ more times than they usually admit – or are even aware of… But now, researchers from the University of Maryland (UM) have created ‘smart underwear’ to measure flatulence…
Exisiting studies suggest that the average person passes gas 14 times each day. Sound like a lot? It might be out of whack with reality. Because those studies relied mainly on self-reporting by the participants.
But the UM team has developed a compact device incorporating a tiny sensor which detects hydro-gen gas in what scientists call ‘flatus’. The wireless monitor clips onto most styles of underwear and records hydrogen spikes characteristic of ‘tots’.
Testing, testing…
In early tests of the device, the sensors recorded more flatus events than expected: “Participants produced flatus an average of 32 times per day, about twice the 14 (±6) daily events often cited in earlier medical literature,” the study report notes. “However, results varied widely among individuals, with totals ranging from just four flatus events per day to as many as 59.”
“Objective measurement gives us an opportunity to increase scientific rigour in an area that’s been difficult to study,” explains study report senior Author Brantley Hall, an assistant professor in the Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics at UMD.
The takeaway
Scientists have established normal ranges for many health measures such as blood glucose and cholesterol. For flatulence, however, there is no widely accepted baseline.
“We don’t actually know what normal flatus production looks like,” Hall observes. “Without that baseline, it’s hard to know when someone’s gas production is truly excessive.”
A new medical reference tool
“We’ve learned a tremendous amount about which microbes live in the gut, but less about what they’re actually doing at any given moment,” Hall said. “The Human Flatus Atlas will establish ob-jective baselines for gut microbial fermentation, which is essential groundwork for evaluating how dietary, probiotic or prebiotic interventions change microbiome activity.”
My take
I’ll take Hall’s word that having a way to objectively measure digestive gases will further the science of medicine in a significant way. But I wonder why it took so long for someone to do it? Hall, himself, says objective standards for cholesterol and blood sugar have been on the books for years. But no-body has tacked flatulence until now.
This suggests that scientists – traditionally considered a conservative, ‘proper’ bunch – may have been too embarrassed until now to admit they were interested in such a culturally-sensitive issue…
~ Maggie J.