We have about 200 milliliters of gas constantly floating in our gastrointestinal tract. This amount does not change before and after meals. And even if a person complains of bloating, then in fact it turns out that he still has the same 200 milliliters of gas in his intestines.
About 99% of our intestinal gas is composed of hydrogen, methane, carbon dioxide, oxygen and nitrogen. It is clear that there will be a lot of nitrogen and oxygen at the entrance to the gastrointestinal tract, because we swallow it directly from the atmosphere. At the exit there will already be bunches of methane.
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is produced at the very beginning of the intestines. It is formed by the digestion of food by our native enzymes, or by the digestion of it by microbes. Gastric acid is also neutralized by bicarbonate in the intestines, and a fizzy with carbon dioxide is obtained. In any case, this carbon dioxide is almost completely absorbed into the bloodstream. So it is not enough at the exit.
Hydrogen
Microbes control the hydrogen in our intestines. They produce this hydrogen, and then they themselves start up it.
If we gorge on legumes or poorly digestible starch, microbes will quickly make hydrogen from it. Part of this hydrogen is used by bacteria, part comes out with bunches, and part is absorbed into the blood and then excreted with respiration.
Methane
Microbes make it. We have a very special bacterium there that specializes in the production of methane. It takes hydrogen with carbon dioxide and makes methane out of them. As a result, the volume of gas in the intestine, on the contrary, decreases.
The resulting methane is either released in bunches, or absorbed into the bloodstream, and then excreted with respiration.
Oxygen
We swallow oxygen with food. There is a lot of it in the stomach, and it is absorbed into the blood. But at the end of the intestine there is little oxygen, therefore, on the contrary, it enters there from the blood. It turns out that we cannot breathe the booty. But we can breathe with our stomach.
Nitrogen
It is even more in the air than oxygen, so it is also first absorbed and released at the exit.
We have already discussed intestinal gases in exhaled air when we discussed the topic of bacterial overgrowth in the intestine.
