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Q. I have been troubled with "sour stomach" throughout my life. Even the tiniest burp smells like sulfurous rotten eggs and can be smelled across large rooms.
I also pass huge amounts of foul-smelling gas. My body has turned into a gas factory! This seems to flare up every few months. My symptoms will lessen or go away and then one day they're back with a vengeance.
My family is suffering and my coworkers are becoming more vocal about my problem.
Please, tell me what I should be doing. My life is miserable!
A. Ask your doctor to test you for celiac disease. This inability to digest gluten from wheat, barley or rye may set off a variety of digestive tract symptoms. Another possible culprit would be lactose intolerance (trouble digesting milk sugar).
While you are at it, the doctor could check you for infection with the stomach bacteria Helicobacter pylori. It can contribute to bad breath, gastritis, ulcers and gas.
Even if you can't find a cause, there are some approaches that may help, including probiotics, Pepto-Bismol, fennel tea and Angostura bitters. We provide more details about such remedies and treatments for H pylori in our brand new Guide to Digestive Disorders.
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I have tried making fennel tea, but I don't really know when I have crushed the little seeds sufficiently. It seems very difficult to do so. I tried pressing down with the back of a spoon but they easily bounce around. I could use some suggestions. I understand that Pepto Bismol affects coumadin. Thank you.
PEOPLE'S PHARMACY RESPONSE: PEPTO-BISMOL CONTAINS BISMUTH SUBSALICYLATE. THE SALICYLATE IS ASPIRIN-LIKE AND CAN INCREASE THE RISK OF BLEEDING ON COUMADIN.
AS FOR THE FENNEL SEEDS, THEY DON'T REALLY NEED TO BE COMPLETELY CRUSHED. THE RECOMMENDATION IS TO "BRUISE" THEM WITH YOUR SPOON OR A PESTLE IF YOU HAVE ONE (YES, THEY DO BOUNCE) SO THAT THEY RELEASE MORE OF THEIR COMPOUNDS INTO THE TEA.
Keep a food diary to figure out which foods cause the most problems. And try a broad-spectrum digestive enzyme formula, like Wobenzym. Amazon sells a fennel tea by A. Vogel which has a number of different herbal ingredients including caraway seed. And many fruits contain helpful enzymes -- like kiwi, papaya and pineapple. Once you figure out which foods are causing trouble, you can take it from there. There's also a book called 'Breaking The Vicious Cycle' by Elaine Gottschall -- it's supposed to be the definitive guide to celiac (and other digestive) disease(s)!
I had fennel tea in the past that was actually in tea bags. You might be able to find it. I believe I bought mine at Christmas Tree Shops but not knowing where you are from they are only in the northeast. Also, try using a mortar and pestle to crush the seeds. It will work much better than a spoon. Good luck.
GerryAnn, I bought an extra coffee grinder (Braun or Krups are the most effective in
grinding the stuff real fine) just for nuts, seeds and different grains like millet,
barley, buckwheat etc. This work fine. You can put the powder in a coffee filter and
put it in a cup of boiling water to steep, but be careful, the paper gets very hot as it
soaks. I get my fennel tea bags from Germany, they cost only about 1 dollar per 20 bags, at health stores here you can pay 4.50 if you can find them. Some stores also
carry tea filter papers or asian stores have netting filter.
Hope this helps. elke
I am so sorry to hear of your problem, you suffer more because you wish you did not have the problem. I would just like to say that my husband had a stomach problem from he was in university. Even ten years after we were married he still woke up with bloody drool on his pillow and he would have frequent heartburn. Oh and yes, he had seen several specialist.
He would sometimes have that sulfur breath too. We moved to another country and I decided that I would start cooking with Olive oil because I could now afford to buy it for daily use. It has been a year and a half and my husband does not have a stomach problem. I know it is the olive oil because a lady who needed stomach surgery was given it to drink and it healed her stomach, and I was told about that in the past but it was just too expensive back home and my husband had more faith in his prescriptions. My mother has reflux and I sent her a large bottle of the olive oil too, so I will report back on that.
Gas may sometimes be caused by a medication you're taking, or if you're taking a multivitamin with digestive enzymes. I switched iron tablets and found that my gas has disappeared almost completely. If you suffer with gas, consider switching medications.
I use Peppermint Oil GI. It also includes fennel and ginger. It was prescribed for me by a lic. ND.
The current Discover magazine (March 2010) has a fascinating interview with Barry Marshall an Australian MD who discovered several years ago that ulcers are caused by a bacteria, Helicobacter pylori. Marshall and his co-researcher shared the 2005 Nobel. Ultimately the FDA and NIH fast tracked his research into the US medical community. Some doctors still haven't gotten the news. Ulcers will often respond to antibacterial treatment.
Dr. Marshall and his team also determined that Helicobacter, "had to be the most important cause of stomach cancer as well." (p.70 Discover Magazine March 2010.)
I had colon re-section surgery last year and as a result suffered from the same embarrassing condition. Fortunately, I found a product called Devrom (www.devrom.com). I've been taking 2 to 4 capsules daily (everyone varies in how much they need to take) and can truly say it has changed my life. I can't recommend it enough! While I agree that it's important to find if there's a root cause, at least this product will help you regain your life while you're trying to figure it out. Good luck!
I'm glad my friend sent me this link! I have been diagnosed with a sigmoid volvulus (incomplete at this point). I've been told that surgery is the last option because of the high rate of failure. I've made a number of changes to my diet in an effort to manage this condition. Recently I've tried peppermint, ginger and fennel tea. It has been very helpful in relieving the amount of gas I now produce. I strongly recommend it!
I had the same issue... I also have celiac disease. I also developed small bowel bacterial overgrowth... I had to deal with that using herbs before the foul smelling gas left... pull all of the gluten and sugar out of your diet as a starter.... to get rid of the gas I used Candibactin AR and Candibactin BR made by Metagenics...I hope this helps you!