12 products that provoke gas formation
Gas formation is a natural process for any person. This is a natural reaction of the body, which is aimed at ridding the body of excess air.
Most often, the reason is the peculiarities of the diet, the inclusion of certain products. Understanding which foods cause increased gas formation can help you avoid problems.
Table of Contents
What foods cause gas formation?
All products that can cause increased gas formation have certain characteristics:
- Difficult to digest.
- During their digestion, gas is released.
- Including them in the diet causes a person to swallow more air, which leads not only to increased gas formation, but also belching.
There are 12 products that can cause increased gas formation:
1. Beans and legumes
Legumes have gained a reputation for causing gas. The reason is the content of a large number of complex sugars-raffinose, which is hardly broken down in the body. In addition, legumes are sources of complex fiber, which can increase gas formation.
However, not all legumes can be a source of gas formation. For example, studies show [1] that baked beans were more likely to cause gas formation compared to eating black-eyed peas (a white variety of peas with black spots).
2. Broccoli and other cruciferous foods
These foods contain high amounts of raffinose and fiber. These vegetables include other products:
- Cauliflower.
- Brussels sprouts.
- White cabbage.
- Asparagus.
3. Whole grains
All wholegrain foods other than rice contain raffinose and a high amount of fiber. This causes increased gas formation, and, as a result, bloating.
Some foods, such as wheat, barley, and rye, contain gluten protein. And, as you know, many people are sensitive to this protein: from intolerance to celiac disease (a serious autoimmune disease).
4. Onions
This is a vegetable that is used to prepare numerous dishes, salads, etc. People can include it in the diet in raw form, as well as heat-treated.
Onions contain fructose, which is broken down by the intestines during digestion. And just digesting this sugar can cause increased gas formation.
5. Garlic
It is also often used in the preparation of food, sauces, salads, etc.
It can also cause increased gas formation. Some patients may develop an intolerance to garlic and the first symptom is bloating and increased gas formation.
6. Dairy products
Dairy products contain protein and are a valuable source of calcium, but in people with lactose intolerance, they can cause increased gas formation and bloating.
According to some data, more than 75% of people lose their ability to digest lactose, the milk sugar found in all dairy products, as they age [2].
With lactase deficiency, after consuming dairy products, other symptoms may occur: flatulence, bloating, pain, diarrhea, or, conversely, constipation.
7. Sugar Substitutes
Sugar alcohols, which are used as sugar substitutes, are becoming increasingly popular.
These foods remain undigested before entering the intestines. And only in the intestines do they begin to break down and simultaneously become a breeding ground for the bacteria that live there.
It is precisely these bacteria, or rather, their vital activity, that causes increased gas formation.
8. Sodas
Sugary sodas are one of the main causes of increased gas formation.
When you include an excessive amount of soda in the diet, a person consumes not only an excessive amount of sugar, but also gases.
To get rid of excess gas in the stomach, frequent shortness of breath is formed.
However, in some cases, gas can accumulate in the intestines.
Difficulties are also added by the fact that some sodas contain sugar alcohols. It turns out that sweet sodas are a cluster of predisposing factors for the formation of increased gas formation.
