By Dr. A. Minocha,   author of  "How To Stop Heartburn: Simple Ways to Heal Heartburn and Acid Reflux" and "Natural Stomach Care: Treating and Preventing Digestive Disorders with Best of Eastern and Western Therapies"

Foul odor of flatus indicates disease of the bowel

Is it a Myth or a Fact? Find out below

The bad odor of the flatus is rarely related to the disease of the digestive tract. It is usually related to the types of foods ingested. Garlic, onions, herbs, and spices are more likely to lead to the bad smell of the flatus. Rarely however, it may be a bowel disease. For example, blood in the intestines when passed in feces has a unique and very offensive odor. Diseases of pancreas may also lead to foul smelling flatus. Generally speaking, however, foul odor is a benign process (may be malignant socially) and is related to our food habits.

More Facts or Myths

Flatus

Flatulence is the expulsion through the rectum of a mixture of gases that are byproducts of the digestion process of mammals and other animals. The mixture of gases is known as flatus, (informally) fart, or simply gas, and is expelled from the rectum in a process colloquially referred to as "passing gas" or "farting". Flatus is brought to the rectum by the same peristaltic process which causes feces to descend from the large intestine. Depending upon the relative state of the anal sphincter (relaxed/tense) and the positions of the buttocks, this often results in an audible crackling or trumpeting sound, but gas can also be passed quietly. The noises commonly associated with flatulence are caused by the vibration of the anal sphincter, and occasionally by the closed buttocks.

The olfactory components of flatulence include skatole, indole, and sulfurous compounds. The non-odorous gases are mainly nitrogen (ingested), carbon dioxide (produced by aerobic microbes or ingested), and hydrogen (produced by some microbes and consumed by others), as well as lesser amounts of oxygen (ingested) and methane (produced by anaerobic microbes). Odors result from trace amounts of other components (often containing sulfur compounds).