How is your tummy after the recent consumption of festive food?
Probably not as stuffed to the gills as you were on Christmas night, but likely to be still feeling a little bloated, perhaps with a touch of acid reflux upsetting your equilibrium as well?
If so, it’s time to introduce you to a recent viral phenomenon – the fart walk. The fart walk is a practice coined by Mairlyn Smith, a 71-year-old Canadian cookbook author who has 180,000 followers on social media, where she is the self-proclaimed queen of fibre. She is the originator of the hashtag #fartwalk, which encourages us to walk after dinner in order to pass gas.
It has to be said that doing the fart walk is not a big exercise ask: fart walks don’t have to be long to be effective. If you aim for at least four to five minutes of light-to-moderate paced walking within about an hour of finishing a meal, your intestinal gases will be well on their way.
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For the maintenance of festive equanimity and cheer, the fart walk should, of course, take place outdoors. The unpleasant odour generated by passing wind can be blamed on less than 1 per cent of the gas we produce. The odourless element is made up of carbon dioxide, nitrogen and oxygen, much of which we swallow when we drink fizzy liquids, smoke or chew gum.
However, the bacteria normally living in our large bowel ferments any undigested carbohydrates to form hydrogen sulphide, methanethiol and dimethyl sulphide. Responsible, respectively, for the smell of rotten eggs, decomposing vegetables and a heavy, sweet odour, these gases are typically produced by eating eggs, cauliflower and meat. And at this time of year, Brussels sprouts are an outsize contributor. Sorbitol, used as a sweetener and present in apples, peaches, pears and prunes, is another source of excess intestinal gas.
The average person releases one to three pints of gas a day. This escapes from the body in 14-25 passes in 24 hours, some of the activity occurring while we are asleep. A source of humour for some is the sound produced by passing flatus. When we emit intestinal gas, it causes the anal sphincter to vibrate, leading to a wide range of sounds depending on the force with which the gas is expelled and the resistance of the sphincter.
Film buffs will recall the rousing campfire scene in Blazing Saddles, in which a group of cowboys eat baked beans, causing extreme flatulence. The director, Mel Brooks, named one of the characters in the film William J Le Petomane (a role he played himself) after Le Pétomane, a famous French performer from the 19th century. Known as the “Fartiste”, Petomane’s tour de force was an ability to reproduce La Marseillaise, the French national anthem, by tunefully passing gas.
Another film scene much beloved of aficionados of outtake programmes is the Pink Panther/Mafia lift scene. Inspector Clouseau (Peter Sellers) is crowded into a small lift with a number of mafiosi. The loud emission of gas by one of the characters results in a hilarious lift journey during which the actors struggle to maintain a straight face.
But, back to the #fartwalk phenomenon.
Moving around after eating definitely helps kickstart your digestion. Our bowels move well on their own, but perform even better when we move. So mild-to-moderate exercise, such as walking, helps the stomach empty more quickly and clears out gas and waste from our digestive system – all of which can help alleviate issues like bloating and constipation. That quicker emptying may also decrease the amount of time acid is present in the stomach, thereby reducing acid reflux.
I would, of course, love to hear if the fart walk works for readers. Regrettably, the health editor tells me The Irish Times cannot accept recordings of your success.
