WEBVTT - Why Are You Farting?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff from How Stuff Works. Hey, brain stuff,

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<v Speaker 1>it's Christian Seger. So in the late eighteen hundreds there

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<v Speaker 1>was this French guy and his name was Le Peto Man,

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<v Speaker 1>and he was one of the stars of Mulan Rouge.

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<v Speaker 1>People would come from far and wide just to watch

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<v Speaker 1>this guy fart, Yeah, to watch him fart. Lepetomon, you see,

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<v Speaker 1>was a professional flat glist, which, as it turns out,

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<v Speaker 1>is still sort of a thing, and certainly it's a

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<v Speaker 1>dream job for some. But if you want to move

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<v Speaker 1>out of the ranks of amateur windbreakers and into those stinking,

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<v Speaker 1>hallowed halls of the professionally flatulent, you will need to

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<v Speaker 1>know a thing or two about farts, like what are they,

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<v Speaker 1>why do they happen, and why did they smell so bad? Well,

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<v Speaker 1>first things first, everyone farts, every single person. Yes, you

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<v Speaker 1>two listening to this, you do too. To not fart

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<v Speaker 1>would be medically fascinating and probably dangerous. On average, most

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<v Speaker 1>people are passing about one leader of gas a day,

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<v Speaker 1>spread out over thirteen to wait for it, twenty one incidents.

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<v Speaker 1>That's twenty one separate times in one day. The composition

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<v Speaker 1>of a fart varies widely, but Usually what we're smelling

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<v Speaker 1>is something that's mostly nitrogen, along with oxygen, carbon dioxide,

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<v Speaker 1>and even methane. This gas itself comes from several sources,

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<v Speaker 1>the air you swallow, gas that enters your intestines, from

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<v Speaker 1>your bloodstream, and so on. But about seventy five of

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<v Speaker 1>your farts are created in your lower intestine, and unfortunately

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<v Speaker 1>not by you. See the bacteria living inside you right now.

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<v Speaker 1>They comprise a microbiome all of their own. And when

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<v Speaker 1>we say it's intricate, we mean it's so intricate that

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<v Speaker 1>David Attenborough could make a documentary about it. These bacteria

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<v Speaker 1>form this thriving empire with billions of tiny separate organisms

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<v Speaker 1>live thing inside their host, and that's you. They're living

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<v Speaker 1>with you in symbiosis. Now, flatulence occurs when food passes

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<v Speaker 1>through your stomach and small intestine without fully breaking down.

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<v Speaker 1>So what does this mean. This means that the food

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<v Speaker 1>hits the large intestine in an undigested state. So, for example,

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<v Speaker 1>let's look at lactose, which is present in dairy products

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<v Speaker 1>like milk and cheese. If you're lactose intolerant, then you

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<v Speaker 1>lack the enzyme that breaks lactose into sugar. Molecules for

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<v Speaker 1>the bloodstream. Without this, lactose just breezes through your stomach

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<v Speaker 1>and small intestine into your large intestine, where it becomes

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<v Speaker 1>the special of the day for billions of hungary bacteria.

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<v Speaker 1>Those guys love lactose, and if you're not going to

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<v Speaker 1>digest it, they will. As they digest this lactose, they

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<v Speaker 1>emit a number of gases, including methane, hydrogen, carbon dioxide,

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<v Speaker 1>and hydrogen sulfide, which is responsible for the unpleasant aroma.

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<v Speaker 1>This process is similar to how yeast produces carbon dioxide

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<v Speaker 1>to leaven bread. And speaking of food, it's true that

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<v Speaker 1>some foods do produce more flatulence, primarily because they contain

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<v Speaker 1>more indigestible carbohydrates. I'm looking at you. Beans, nutrient dense vegetables,

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<v Speaker 1>and fiber rich foods all have a reputation for enabling flatulence.

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<v Speaker 1>That's not necessarily a bad thing. See. As scientists learn

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<v Speaker 1>more about the relationship between diet, health and a person's microbiome,

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<v Speaker 1>they're discovering that these flatulent foods may encourage the growth

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<v Speaker 1>of beneficial bacteria in your gut. When they're producing that

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<v Speaker 1>next embarrassing puff of gas, they're also making molecules to

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<v Speaker 1>protect your intestinal lining and prevent infections. So remember the

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<v Speaker 1>next time you're silent crime accidentally ends up sounding like

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<v Speaker 1>a stuttering trumpet. Your intestinal bacteria are the real culprits.

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<v Speaker 1>They are the ones act truly farting. And look, I

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<v Speaker 1>want to emphasize this. They are farting inside of you

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<v Speaker 1>and then you fart their farts out. Are we clear

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<v Speaker 1>on that part, which leads us to the bigger question

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<v Speaker 1>of the day, who are we farting inside of? Check

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<v Speaker 1>out the brainstuff channel on YouTube, and for more on

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<v Speaker 1>this and thousands of other topics, visit how stuff works

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<v Speaker 1>dot com.