Tag Archives: flatus

Extending Benjamin Franklin’s Observations: Chart Your Fart Study

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E Brindal et al. JAMA Netw Open. 2026;9;5):e2615637. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2026. 15637. Open Access! Regular Flatulence Patterns Among Community-Dwelling Individuals in Australia. Thanks to Stan Cohen for sharing this study.

Methods: Cross-sectional study with 6416 participants  Data were recorded into a purpose-designed mobile phone application (Chart Your Fart) by participants who logged their flatus passages in real time, consistent with experience sampling methods.3

Key findings:

  • See Table below – Mean flatus per day was 5.0

Discussion:

  • “In terms of range, observed data suggest good consistency with other methods, including retrospective frequency reports in a large US sample of individuals experiencing gas or bloating (n = 16 537),6 a small laboratory study that collected a median of 8 emissions throughout 24 hours,7 and even Benjamin Franklin’s personal account of “discharging wind from bowels” 7 times a day.8“
  • “Limitations of this study include failing to quantify emissions made while asleep due to reliance on self-report.”

My take: Looks like another good study to discuss at the GI dinner table. Also, lots of jokes that would be apropos. Here’s one:

An elderly patient goes to her doctor and at the end of her exam she tells him there is one other matter that she would like to discuss. “It seems that I have frequent gas but fortunately it is silent and does not smell. I have even passed some gas while I’ve been here.” The physician says, “Hmmm… take these pills for one week and then come back.”

When she returns, she complains, “I don’t know what was in those pills. The gas now smells terrible but thank goodness it is silent.” The doctor replies, “Well, it looks like the antibiotics have improved your ability to smell. Now we need to get your hearing evaluated.”

Related blog post: Somewhat Funny Flatulent Research

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Somewhat Funny Flatulent Research

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A recent study (CV Almario et al. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol 2017; 15: 1308-10) was titled: “Old Farts -Fact or Fiction?  Results from a Population-Based Survey of 16,000 Americans Examining the Association Between Age and Flatus.” I was surprised that this was not in an April Fools edition, though I had to read the article because of the intriguing title. The authors premise was to determine if the elderly pass more flatus.

Key findings:

  • Based on self-reporting using a mobile app (MyGiHealth), the authors found that individuals ≥65 years passed flatus less often than the younger age groups. Among those reporting flatulence every 1-2 hours, only 22.6% of those ≥65 years had this frequency; this compared to at least 33% in all other age groups.
  • Most commonly, individuals in all age groups reported passing flatus about every 3-4 hours (36-41%); the next most common frequency was about every 1-2 hours (23-38%) across all age groups. The other frequent category was passing flatus once or twice a day which was reported between 24-29% across all age groups.

The authors indicate that limitations of their study include “social desirability bias” and “information bias.”  In addition, while the entire cohort was >16,000, there were only 296 who were ≥65 years of age.

While I’m not an expert in this field, other limitations could include worsened ability to detect/record flatus with age and/or worsened memory about frequency of passing flatus.

My take: This study shows that almost any study could find a home in some medical journals. In my view, self-reported frequency of passing flatus may not be accurate (the dog did it!).

Pitt Street Bridge, Charleston, SC