Toot. Pop. Whiff. Fart.

Ok, word of warning here - I'm going to offer a little TMI, but hey, maybe you can relate.

Growing up, our family didn't fart. We popped or tooted. And we NEVER did it in front of anyone in the family (or anyone else for that matter!). You had to go into the washroom to do it. Yes, we were THAT repressed uptight 'stiff upper lip' English family.  

Over the years, I would blush whenever I accidentally let one slip, and would be completely mortified if it happened in front of friends or especially a boy I liked! I was also the girlfriend who never pooped at her boyfriends house, waiting instead to get home to do my business.   

I remember one time when I was around 17, I was in such pain, that my boyfriend at the time took me to the emergency room because I was doubled over and crying. After being examined and tested, the doctor concluded that I was suffering from gas and that, in his words, I 'just need to have a good poop or a fart' Again, coming from the family I came from, you can imagine my mortification at being told this!

Later, during both of my pregnancies, I was severely constipated and quite gassy, but things really changed as I got older and wasn't in the best health in my 40's.

I suffered from gas, and suffered horribly. There were days when it was literally 'clear the room' bad. Seriously, even the animals left the room in disgust. I truly thought I was rotting from inside, and I might have associated it with the food I ate, but never really gave it more than a passing thought (no pun intended) as I just thought this was a consequence of getting older and being in poor health.

Once I started to do research into my health, and then went back to school for nutrition, I started to realize that there were a lot of reasons why I suffered from bloating and gas.

The most common reasons are food intolerance and too much fiber all at once. Many women who are going through perimenopause and menopause report that gas is a major problem for them as well.  Another cause is talking and chewing at the same time (something I was really guilty of and one more reason to pay attention to your food!)

So, to help you if you are experiencing bloating and gas, are 7 ways to safely ban bloat through a nutritional and holistic approach:

• Use herbs such as basil, dill, ginger, fennel, and mint as tea or in your cooking- all of these herbs have gas-relieving properties
• Introduce fiber-rich food gradually - fiber is great, but if you are not used to a fiber-rich diet and suddenly eat a lot of fiber-rich food, your GI tract will act up.
• Cook beans properly - soak beans for at least 4 hours, and use spices or kombu to improve digestibility.
• Notice how your body reacts to vegetables such as broccoli and cabbage, and moderate intake if necessary.
• Look for potential food intolerance (e.g. lactose or gluten) - if your body cannot digest and assimilate these nutrients properly, they can cause gas.
• Yoga poses such as twisting can help relieve gas - these poses stimulate the movement of the smooth muscles of the intestinal walls and help "move things along".
• Chew carminative seeds such as anise, cardamom, cumin, dill and fennel at and between meals to reduce gas and bloating

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