# Is swallowing air the only cause of burping? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 27, 2003, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839 "2003-10-27T14:37:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2003, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839/1 "2003-10-27T14:37:23Z")
Since my stomach operation in July, I have had chronic excessive burping. It occurs all the time and I can’t stress enough the word excessive. Enough that others comment on it. My doctor tells me that it is because I swallow air. I can’t believe that I am swallowing THIS much air. Are there other causes for burping. ---
**Author:** ![DreadCthulhu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/db5fbb/32.png) [@DreadCthulhu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DreadCthulhu)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2003, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839/2 "2003-10-27T15:13:44Z")
Well, drinking carbonated beverages tend to make me burp. ---
**Author:** ![Dogface](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@Dogface](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogface)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2003, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839/3 "2003-10-27T15:56:26Z")
When your intestinal flora exudes waste gasses, it usually comes out as flatulence–usually. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2003, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839/4 "2003-10-27T16:08:46Z")
Doesn’t most of the bacterial stuff happen below the stomach though? (resulting in the _other_ kind of gaseous emission). ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2003, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839/5 "2003-10-27T16:11:57Z")
Certain foods release excessive gases after making they’re way tio your stomach. Carbonated beverages continue to release gas after you swallow them and i’m sure other foods release gases one your stomach acids start to break them down. ---
**Author:** ![Algernon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a183cd/32.png) [@Algernon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Algernon)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2003, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839/6 "2003-10-27T16:38:55Z")
Anecdotal, but this may be instructive. During the last 12-18 months, I’ve experienced a continual increase in the discomfort due to gas after eating. Burping gas, not farting gas. At first it seemed like just certain kinds of food would initiate the problem. Now it is caused by anything I eat, no matter how bland. Plain crackers. Soup. I had to sleep pretty much sitting up. Nothing I tried provided relief. Pepsid AC. Beano. Lactaid (thinking at first it was just lactose intolerance). Until I tried Prilosec just a week or so ago. Now, no symptoms at all. I’m gas free!!! Based on the two facts of: a) symptoms got worse gradually, and b) an acid prevention drug solved the problem; I come to the conclusion that my serious gas was _not_ due swallowing air while eating. While I am currently symptom free, I don’t know what will happen when the 14 day regimen runs stops. The package says I cannot take another 14-day dose for 4 months. I have a trip to the doctor on my to-do list. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2003, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839/7 "2003-10-27T17:18:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Algernon \* > \*\*Anecdotal, but this may be instructive. > > During the last 12-18 months, I’ve experienced a continual increase in the discomfort due to gas after eating. Burping gas, not farting gas. At first it seemed like just certain kinds of food would initiate the problem. Now it is caused by anything I eat, no matter how bland. Plain crackers. Soup. I had to sleep pretty much sitting up. > > Nothing I tried provided relief. Pepsid AC. Beano. Lactaid (thinking at first it was just lactose intolerance). Until I tried Prilosec just a week or so ago. Now, no symptoms at all. I’m gas free!!! > > Based on the two facts of: a) symptoms got worse gradually, and b) an acid prevention drug solved the problem; I come to the conclusion that my serious gas was _not_ due swallowing air while eating. > > While I am currently symptom free, I don’t know what will happen when the 14 day regimen runs stops. The package says I cannot take another 14-day dose for 4 months. > > I have a trip to the doctor on my to-do list. \*\* You have pretty much descibed my symptoms. No matter what I eat I burp. Before the operation I would drink 2 litres of soda a day and did not experience this kind of burping - now I pretty much drink water (soda only when I really crave it) and I am constantly burping. Unfortunately, prilosec has not helped - it was one of the things that I have tried. I know that cucumbers will make people burp - so I believe that there are things that make the stomach produce bloating and burping that has nothing to do with swallowing air… ---
**Author:** ![KnK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/edb3f5/32.png) [@KnK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KnK)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2003, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839/8 "2003-10-27T17:26:26Z")
Having had GI issues for about 16yrs, I can say with some certainty that burping can be caused from other things than swallowing air. I burp constantly, and frequently experience gas on the south end as well. I even burp when I get hungry, so I know it is not necessarily from the food I ate or the act of eating and swallowing air. Additionally, I cannot lay on my left side without burping! ---
**Author:** ![Algernon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a183cd/32.png) [@Algernon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Algernon)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2003, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839/9 "2003-10-27T17:31:48Z")
I wish you luck **Khadaji** in your search for a fix. Do you have the ability to go get a second opinion? It seems to me that your doctor might be grasping at straws. Because the start of your symptoms coincided with your surgery, I’d first suspect some cause-and-effect there, rather than swallowing air which would require some change in how you’ve been eating your entire lifetime. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2003, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839/10 "2003-10-27T17:49:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Algernon \* > \*\*I wish you luck **Khadaji** in your search for a fix. > > Do you have the ability to go get a second opinion? It seems to me that your doctor might be grasping at straws. Because the start of your symptoms coincided with your surgery, I’d first suspect some cause-and-effect there, rather than swallowing air which would require some change in how you’ve been eating your entire lifetime. \*\* I am currently trying to get into Hershey or John Hopkins, both of which reportedly have excellent GI clinics. However, neither can see me until next year. ---
**Author:** ![DreadCthulhu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/db5fbb/32.png) [@DreadCthulhu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DreadCthulhu)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2003, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839/11 "2003-10-27T20:35:08Z")
Well, drinking carbonated beverages tend to make me burp. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2003, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839/12 "2003-10-27T20:52:24Z")
Greatest duration doublepost I ever did see… 5 hours, 22 minutes. ---
**Author:** ![NajaNivea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/22d042/32.png) [@NajaNivea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NajaNivea)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2003, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839/14 "2003-10-27T22:02:58Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by KnK \* > \*\* Additionally, I cannot lay on my left side without burping! \*\* At our old house, our bed was situated such that I slept on the left side of the bed, and thus could sleep on my right side, facing Mr. Armadillo, and generally cuddled up to him, using his shoulder or chest as a pillow. At our new house, the only available space in our bedroom for our bed is in a south corner, meaning that I now am sleeping on the right side of the bed, as he hates sleeping against the wall–this means that to sleep in that position, I have to be on my left side. So within the first few nights of this arrangement, I noticed that sleeping on my left side causes me to burp and experience heartburn and acid reflux, and whenever I’ve tried it since it’s the same. Now I hardly ever get to sleep on him ☹ Anyone know what causes this? ~mixie ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 9:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839/15 "2003-10-28T09:09:02Z")
Gallstones are a well-known cause of gas. The liver produces bile, which goes through the bile duct to the stomach. The gall bladder is part of the bile duct - it stores bile, which it then releases when you eat. If gallstones form in the gall bladder they can block the flow of bile. The digestive system uses bile to help digest fats - without bile you will get a lot of gas after eating fatty foods (and less gas after eating less-fatty foods). Backache is another syptom of gallstones. If you have both backaches and gas after eating, you probably have gallstones. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 9:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839/16 "2003-10-28T09:14:17Z")
Gallstones are a well-known cause of gas. The liver produces bile, which goes through the bile duct to the stomach. The gall bladder is part of the bile duct - it stores bile, which it then releases when you eat. If gallstones form in the gall bladder they can block the flow of bile. The digestive system uses bile to help digest fats - without bile you will get a lot of gas after eating fatty foods (and less gas after eating less-fatty foods). Backache is another syptom of gallstones. If you have both backaches and gas after eating, you probably have gallstones. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2003, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839/17 "2003-11-01T15:03:38Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Jeff Lichtman \* > \*\*Gallstones are a well-known cause of gas. The liver produces bile, which goes through the bile duct to the stomach. The gall bladder is part of the bile duct - it stores bile, which it then releases when you eat. If gallstones form in the gall bladder they can block the flow of bile. The digestive system uses bile to help digest fats - without bile you will get a lot of gas after eating fatty foods (and less gas after eating less-fatty foods). > > Backache is another syptom of gallstones. If you have both backaches and gas after eating, you probably have gallstones. \*\* Thanks for the reply. Nope, no back aches. And the gas seems to be chronic regardless of what or when I eat. ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2003, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-swallowing-air-the-only-cause-of-burping/209839/18 "2003-12-29T04:38:48Z")
Another bit of anecdotal evidence: I had a big problem with burping for years and years. Not little burps, either, the long gross ones teenaged boys use to belch the national anthem or the alphabet or something. :o Two years ago I gave the Atkin’s Diet a try for a few months. Which worked fine as a diet, for as long as I could stand the boredom, but why I’m bringing it up is that I suddenly realized about a week into it that I hadn’t burped even once that day, and hadn’t for several days before that. And it stayed true: I doubt I burped five times in the five months I was on Atkins, and this despite my drinking tons and tons of diet soda all the time. Clearly my system was producing the gas from breaking down carbohydrates, though which ones are the problems… \ Anyway, why not skip the bread/potatoes/rice/sugary stuff for a few days, and see if that helps?