Farting up to 23 times a day, or roughly once an hour, is normal, a Filipino oncologist said in a GMA television program.
Citing a study, Dr. Isaac David Ampil says in an episode of “Pinoy MD” that people normally let loose about 17 to 23 times daily”•but no one really consciously counts the flatulence bombs they unleash to unknowing bystanders.
“But if you’re doing it too much, it may be a sign that you have problems with digestion,” said Ampil, who is also senior vice president and head of Research and Biotechnology of St. Luke’s Hospital.
As part of the normal process of digestion, passing gas is a way for the body to expend the excessive air released when food is digested, noted the oncologist, who’s also a surgeon.
Other health conditions could cause excess flatulence, Ampil said, along with a diet with too much complex carbohydrates such as potatoes and sweet potatoes or “kamote””•which Filipinos often point to as a culprit.
“This is because when complex carbohydrates are digested, gas is really released, and this comes out as farting,” Ampil said.
If you feel like you pass gas 24 times or more in a day, the St. Luke’s doctor advises to cut down on potatoes and similar root crops and observe if anything changes.
If not, Ampil said a visit to a gastroenterologist, who could check if everything is normal in your digestive system, could do the trick.