It’s understandable that farting can be embarrassing for some, but holding it in can result in something as humiliating or worse.
Your diet does more than just fuel your body. It has a significant impact on your mental health and also your breath. While imbalance in your gut is associated with an unpleasant odor from your mouth, holding fast can have a similar impact.
Doctor explains the link between farts and bad breath
London-based NHS surgeon Dr. Karan Rajan has explained in his TikTok video the theory that claims holding farts can make your breath smell bad.
The link between the gas in the intestine and bad breath was first mentioned in the research cited by nutrition and dietetics professor Clare Collins in 2018.
Dr. Karan uses a visual representation to explain the professor’s findings about farts finding a different outlet if not released naturally.
He explains that the gas buildup in the intestine gets reabsorbed into the circulatory system if you hold it for long, which then travels to the lungs.
Your breath is believed to smell bad when you breathe out the same gas that originated from your gut. He further explains what happens when you forcefully hold in a fart as the gas will have to escape from the added pressure on the anal sphincter, resulting in an embarrassing accident.
Dr. Karan boasts over a decade of experience in medicine and uses his platform to educate his followers about issues concerning health while retaining from offering any medical advice. He currently teaches at The University of Sunderland.
Other problems from holding your fart
There is no scientific evidence to prove holding farts can be fatal, but it can cause a series of other issues, as noted by Healthline.
When you stop yourself from releasing the gas that needs to come out through one of the outlets, you can experience immediate pain, discomfort, bloating, and ingestion.
As early as the 1970s, experts claimed that holding farts as a habit could result in inflammation or swelling of the pouches along the digestive track.
The medical term for the condition is diverticulitis and it can turn into an infection if untreated. However, recent research clearly linking the impact of unreleased gas and diverticulitis is lacking.
