10 foods that make you fart
A nutritionist explains the science behind fart-inducing foods and the worst culprits to be aware of
“Pardon me for being rude, it was not me, it was my food.” – Anonymous
We all know there’s a grain – probably a wholegrain – of truth in the playground rhyme. Some foods make us fart as if our lives depended on it.
If you’re among the many people now paying closer attention to your gut health, you might be curious as to why certain foods cause more flatulence than others, and whether that makes a difference to your wellbeing.
To get to the bottom of this nebulous issue, we spoke to nutritionist Dr Emma Beckett, and gut health expert Dr Megan Rossi. Hold your breath, open the windows wide and join us as we cast a nose over 10 flatulence-inducing foods. We’ll explain some of the often misunderstood facts of farting along the way.
Next, see the best probiotic foods to support gut health, find out what gut health really means and see our gut-friendly recipes.
Why do we fart?
We fart because we must.
“Flatulence is a natural part of digestion and often a sign of a well-fed gut microbiome,” says Dr Megan Rossi, a Research Fellow at King’s College London and Founder of The Gut Health Doctor.
“On average, someone eating 30g of fibre daily will pass wind 10 to 20 times daily, which is perfectly normal. The gas in our intestines comes from two main sources: fermentation in the large intestine (which is essentially the breakdown of leftover food), and the air we swallow,” she says.
“Around 70 per cent of the gas we produce comes from fermentation, which is the most common cause of flatulence.”
So, while some people take pride in their farts, a lot of the credit actually goes to their gut bacteria. The microbes make the gas, and our bodies merely send it on its way.
One thing you may be able to control is the sound of your farts. The speed of the escaping gas and the tightness of the aperture affect the pitch and volume of a fart, so some judicious clenching could help make your flatulence quieter (or louder, as you wish).
Another factor that affects flatulence is what you eat. Some foods cause more wind than others – and as we’ll see, this is heavily influenced by their fibre content.
10 farty foods
1. Beans
The more you eat, the more you toot. Baked beans can cause flatulence due to their high content of fibre and a complex sugar (trisaccharide) called raffinose. These are broken down by bacteria in the intestines, leading to a buildup of gas.
The haricot beans used in baked beans are one of many types of bean that can unleash rampant flatulence. Others include black beans, pinto beans and kidney beans.
2. Beef
If you’ve just beefed, perhaps that’s because you’ve just eaten beef. From beef mince to steak, beef products often contain high levels of taurine and methionine – amino acids that elicit wicked-smelling flatulence.
“Overconsumption of high-protein foods like meat can cause farts in some people as sulphur is released through their digestion,” says Dr Emma Beckett, a FOODiQ Global nutritionist and author.
“The sulphur is converted by our gut bacteria into hydrogen sulphide – that lovely rotten egg smell – and ‘enhances’ the odour of gas produced by other foods you eat as well as the meat,” she explains.
“As well as containing sulphur, the methionine can slow movement of food through the gastrointestinal tract, giving it more time to release gas.”
3. Artichokes
Artichokes can turn even the quietest bum into a veritable Pavabotty. For this article’s author, they’re colonic kryptonite.
The artichoke’s genius for causing flatulence stems from its very high content of inulin, which is a soluble starch that also adds sweetness to the vegetable. Jerusalem artichokes are especially inulin-rich, with 10 to 12g of the starch per 100g.
4. Cruciferous vegetables
It’s common knowledge that sprouts are responsible for some of the smelliest, most antisocial farts – but you might not be aware that the whole cabbage family can cause increased flatulence.
“More than 99 per cent of the gas we produce is odourless, but the distinct ‘rotten egg’ smell comes from bacteria breaking down sulphur-containing compounds in foods,” says Dr Rossi.
“These compounds are found in groups of foods including cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, kale, and brussels sprouts.”
As well as making you fart, cruciferous vegetables can inactivate carcinogens and help support liver function.
5. Alliums
Another group of foods Dr Rossi highlights as containing compounds with sulphur is the allium family, which includes garlic, leeks, onions, shallots and chives.
A touch of flatulence after eating alliums is nothing to worry about (and it’s a small price to pay for the rich flavours). However, if you regularly experience a lot of farting and gastric discomfort after eating onion, garlic or another allium, there’s a chance you may have an allium intolerance.
6. Strawberries
These fruits probably aren’t the first thing you’d expect to see on a list of foods that make you fart, but many people do feel gassy after a bowlful of strawberries.
This is due to strawberries’ high content of fibre and sugar, both of which ferment in the intestines and generate gas.
7. Chicken
Never mind the chicken – your fellow humans will be crossing the road to get to the other side after you’ve tucked into a hearty portion of poultry.
One serving of lean chicken breast contains well over 100 per cenr of your RDA of two amino acids – cysteine and methionine – that can cause fowl-smelling farts due to their content of sulphur-containing compounds.
8. Wholegrains
Like beans, many whole grains have high levels of fibre and raffinose, which is why they can cause increased flatulence.
Every fart has a silver lining. Wholegrains such as freekeh, sorghum and spelt can bring tremendous health benefits including lowered blood sugar and reduced inflammation.
“Avoiding high-fibre foods to avoid the gas won’t benefit you long term, so eat the fibre, and accept the farts,” says Dr Beckett.
9. Dairy products
Not everyone experiences increased flatulence after consuming dairy products such as milk, cheese and butter.
However, if you are lactose intolerant, you will likely encounter flatulence (and possibly worse symptoms such as stomach cramps and sickness). An estimated 65 per cent of people worldwide are lactose intolerant, although tolerance is much higher in certain parts of the world (including the UK).
10. Soft drinks
There’s nothing soft about a fizzy drink-fuelled fart. Swigging your favourite pop adds significant quantities of carbon dioxide and swallowed air into the digestive system – and the gas is going to come out at one end or the other.
Chewing gum can also cause increased flatulence due to the buildup of swallowed air, so switching to one sweet treat from another won’t necessarily spare you.
So, should you avoid foods that make you fart?
Some people avoid certain foods because they’re put off by the prospect of flatulence – so much so that the phenomenon of ‘bean hesitancy’ has been observed in the United States.
But with the exception of breaks ahead of occasions like job interviews, religious ceremonies and first dates, you shouldn’t alter your diet just to avoid normal flatulence. The good nutrition found in many fart-inducing foods is simply too important
“Because they reduce cholesterol absorption, fibres are good for heart health, help keep you regular, and help keep you fuller for longer,” says Dr Beckett.
“Some of them make gas, but they are the housing of our gut bacteria, and they also make other things that are absorbed into our bodies and have health benefits.”
Dr Rossi adds: “I wouldn’t recommend cutting out sulphur-rich foods like cruciferous and allium vegetables, as they have significant health benefits.
“In fact, increasing your dietary fibre can help manage more pungent flatulence. When you eat more fibre, your gut bacteria focus on breaking it down, making them less likely to ferment sulphur-containing compounds found in high-protein foods.”
As much as some of us find the humour in farting, the long-standing social stigma around farts continues to linger like a bad smell. This harms us all by putting us off nutritious foods and encouraging us to ‘hold it in’, which can lead to bloating and more serious health effects.
“I ultimately think we need to be less weird about farts – it’s part of digestion,” says Dr Beckett.
“60 per cent of Australians think they fart too much and 40 per cent report experiencing bloating, which says to me that lots of us probably aren’t farting right!”
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