How can I know if I have Flatulence?
June 15, 2016
Edit
Flatulence
Flatulence is the presence of excessive air or gas in the stomach or intestines that bloats the organs. It may be an ordinary disease - eight out of ten people suffer from it - but it is an embarrassing situation to pass fowl-smelling gas with or without noise as it is considered a bad manner. Some people suppress this urge, but Ayurveda recommends this urge not be suppressed as doing so can give rise to many diseases.
Eating certain foods or drinking carbonated beverages can introduce air into the stomach and increase flatulence. You may also swallow air when you eat too quickly or when you chew gum. Because infants frequently swallow air when feeding, they may have flatulence after they have been fed. The act of burping an infant helps relieve the discomfort caused by swallowed air.Symptoms
Flatulence may be accompanied by other symptoms, depending on the underlying disease, disorder or condition. Symptoms that frequently affect the digestive tract may also involve other body systems.
Flatulence may accompany other symptoms affecting the digestive tract including:
- Abdominal swelling, distension or bloating
- Bad breath
- Belching
- Change in bowel habits
- Constipation
- Diarrhea
- Heartburn
- Nausea with or without vomiting
- Ain or feeling of heaviness in the abdomen
- Loss of appetite
- Nausea
- Lethargy and dullness
- Belching and headache in some cases
How can I know if I have Flatulence?
If you, or someone you are with, have any of these life-threatening symptoms including:
- Chest pain, chest tightness, chest pressure, or palpitations
- High fever (higher than 101 degrees Fahrenheit)
- Respiratory or breathing problems, such as shortness of breath, difficulty breathing or inability to breathe, labored breathing, wheezing, or choking
- Severe abdominal pain
- Vomiting blood, rectal bleeding, or bloody stool
Ayurvedic Cure
Flatulence, known as Aadhyaman in Ayurveda, is caused due to an imbalance of Vata and Pitta Dosha. Pitta is a humor that symbolizes heat or fire. It controls the digestive fire or jatharagni - the fire that helps digest foods. Vata is another humor, which symbolizes air or wind. Low Pitta Dosha and aggravated Vata Dosha result in low digestive fire, thus impairing digestion. Impaired digestion leads to flatulence.
- Make a mixture of 1 gram of asafetida fried in purified butter, ½ teaspoon of black salt, and 3 teaspoons of celery seeds. Take 1 teaspoon with lukewarm water 2-3 times a day.
- Make a mixture of 1 teaspoon of roasted cumin seeds powder, 1 teaspoon of celery seeds, 1 teaspoon of dried ginger powder and ¼ teaspoon of black salt.
- Take ½ teaspoon of the mixture with lukewarm water twice a day.
- Have 1 glassful of buttermilk with 1/6 teaspoon each of roasted cumin seeds powder and dried ginger powder. Add black salt according to taste.