Australians are being asked to record their smelly, loud, prolonged or silent farts for science.
The CSIRO wants to collect data from tens of thousands of people, including the frequency, odor, volume and duration of flatulence, to help researchers better understand the country's gut health.
Nutritionist Megan Lebri said that while some people find farting embarrassing and unpleasant, a healthy body can let it go.
“Sometimes there's a noise that might startle you. Sometimes there's a smell that makes you self-conscious,” she said.
“The passage of wind is a natural phenomenon and indicates that our digestive system is functioning properly.”
The average person experiences wind passes between seven and 20 times a day, Lebri said.
“It really depends on the type of food you eat, how much fiber you get, and how much you move around,” she says.
“This is a big question: What is normal? We want to have high-quality, comprehensive data to find out what that number is.”
She says bloating occurs when the body expels excess gas from breaking down and processing food.
“Different foods, medical conditions, and even the way we chew and swallow can affect how our bodies handle excess gas, leading to differences in odor, frequency, and even amount. ” she said.
Flatulence is made up of many different gases, but only one of them, hydrogen sulfide, causes a strong odor. It's produced by bacteria in your gut that break down and ferment various foods during digestion, but it can also be an indicator that something is wrong.
“If something starts suddenly, has a particularly strong odor, or is completely different, it could be a sign that something else is going on. Perhaps an infection or some kind of intolerance. “It's a disease,” Lebri said.
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The 2021 CSIRO Gut Health Survey found that more than 60% of Australians report excessive bloating, with more than 40% experiencing it almost every day.
Lebri said a person's gut health is an important indicator of their overall health.
“People often complain about excessive flatulence and bloating, but what we want to know is what is normal, what people should expect, and how it would work if the situation were different. I wonder if it will turn out like that.”
People ages 14 and older are encouraged to track their flatulence using the free Chart Your Fart phone app.
“When you go into the app and click on a recording, you'll see five characteristics: odor, volume, duration, linger, and detectability on a sliding scale,” Lebri said.
“When you fart, the app literally starts making a graph.”
