10 Things That Are Making You Fart More Than Normal

August 6, 2026 Kyle John Blake

By Kyle John Blake, Founder of Mammoth Fiber • Published August 06, 2026
This article has not been reviewed by a medical professional. Consult a healthcare provider before making changes to your diet or supplement routine.

TL;DR: 10 Things Making You Fart More Than Normal

Excessive gas usually comes down to what you're eating, how fast you're eating it, and what's going on in your gut microbiome. The biggest culprits include cruciferous vegetables, beans, dairy, eating too fast, protein shakes, carbonated drinks, sugar alcohols, onions and garlic, stress, and paradoxically — not eating enough fiber. Most are fixable without eliminating the foods you actually like. If gas is severe, persistent, or accompanied by other symptoms, talk to a healthcare provider.

Everyone farts. The average person passes gas 14 to 23 times a day — which is probably more than you thought, and also probably not as much as you've been doing lately. If you've been clearing rooms, questioning your life choices, and wondering what in your diet has declared war on everyone around you, this list is for you.

1. Cruciferous Vegetables

Broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, kale — the entire family of vegetables your doctor tells you to eat more of. These are genuinely excellent for you and genuinely terrible for your social life in the short term. [1]

Cruciferous vegetables are high in raffinose (a complex sugar the human body can't break down) and sulfur-containing compounds. Both get fermented by gut bacteria in the large intestine, producing gas and — thanks to the sulfur — some of the most aromatic results you'll ever experience. The fix isn't to stop eating them. It's to cook them (which breaks down some of the raffinose), eat smaller portions at a time, and give your gut microbiome time to adapt.

2. Beans and Legumes

Black beans, chickpeas, lentils, kidney beans — the protein sources everyone says to eat for gut health that also make you absolutely miserable for three hours after lunch. [2]

Beans are packed with oligosaccharides — complex carbohydrates that humans can't digest because we lack the enzyme alpha-galactosidase. They pass undigested into the large intestine where bacteria eagerly ferment them. The result: gas. Lots of it. Rinsing canned beans well, soaking dried beans, and gradually increasing your intake over weeks all help. Your gut adapts with time — the bacteria that thrive on oligosaccharides become more efficient, and the gas eventually calms down.

3. Dairy

If you've noticed that milk, ice cream, or cheese sends you running, you're not alone. Lactose intolerance — the reduced ability to digest lactose (the sugar in dairy) — becomes more common with age. Approximately 65% of people develop some degree of lactose malabsorption after childhood. [3]

When lactose isn't digested in the small intestine, it passes into the large intestine, where bacteria ferment it and produce gas, bloating, and sometimes cramping or diarrhea. Hard aged cheeses have very little lactose. Greek yogurt is much lower in lactose than milk. Lactase enzyme supplements taken with dairy can help significantly — and lactase is one of the enzymes in the DigeSEB® blend in Mammoth Fiber for exactly this reason.

4. Eating Too Fast

Speed-eating does two things that increase gas: you swallow significantly more air, and you bypass the chewing-based digestion that starts breaking food down before it hits your stomach. [4]

Swallowed air (aerophagia) contributes directly to bloating and burping, but some of it also passes further down. And food that isn't properly chewed — especially fibrous or starchy foods — arrives in the large intestine less broken down, giving bacteria more to work with. Slowing down at meals is one of the highest-return, lowest-effort changes you can make for digestive comfort.

5. Protein Shakes and High-Protein Diets

If you started a high-protein phase and suddenly everyone is giving you a wide berth at the gym, there's a reason. High protein intake — especially from whey, casein, or large amounts of meat — produces some of the most sulfur-rich, bacteria-fermented gas your body is capable of generating. [5]

When protein isn't fully broken down in the small intestine (which happens more easily with very large protein loads), it reaches the large intestine where bacteria ferment it using a process called putrefaction. The byproducts include hydrogen sulfide and a charming collection of other sulfur compounds. Supporting protein digestion with protease enzymes helps — the goal is getting more of the protein absorbed in the small intestine rather than fermented in the colon.

6. Carbonated Drinks

This one is the most direct cause on the list — you are literally drinking pressurized gas. Sparkling water, soda, beer, energy drinks, and kombucha all introduce CO₂ directly into your digestive tract. Some gets released as burping, but some makes its way further down. [6]

If you drink carbonated beverages regularly and also deal with bloating and gas, this is the lowest-effort variable to test. Cut sparkling water for a week and see what changes.

7. Sugar Alcohols

"Sugar-free" foods are one of the sneakiest gas sources because they seem virtuous. Sorbitol, xylitol, erythritol, and mannitol are sugar alcohols used as sweeteners in protein bars, diet candy, chewing gum, and low-calorie products. They're poorly absorbed by the small intestine and pass into the large intestine, where bacteria ferment them. [7]

The irony is that many people eating "clean" or "diet" foods experience significantly more gas than they would from regular versions of those foods. Check the ingredients list of your protein bars, sugar-free gummies, and diet snacks — if sugar alcohols are high on the list, they're likely contributing.

8. Onions and Garlic

Onions and garlic are high in fructans — a type of FODMAPs (fermentable carbohydrates) that the small intestine can't fully absorb. They're also sulfur-rich, which means they contribute both volume and odor to the gas they produce. [8]

The hard truth: cooking reduces some but not all of the fructan content. If onions and garlic are consistent triggers for you, garlic-infused oil (where the fructans don't transfer to the oil) and the green tops of scallions (lower in fructans than the white parts) are workarounds that keep the flavor without the consequences.

9. Stress

This one surprises people, but stress directly affects gut motility, digestive enzyme secretion, and gut microbiome composition — all of which influence how much gas you produce. The gut-brain axis is a real, bidirectional communication network between your digestive system and central nervous system. When you're stressed, your sympathetic nervous system slows digestion and alters fermentation patterns in the gut. [9]

If you've noticed that particularly stressful weeks are also particularly gassy weeks, it's not a coincidence. The gut feels stress just like the rest of you does. Managing stress through sleep, movement, and whatever actually works for your life has downstream benefits for digestion that most people don't connect.

10. Not Eating Enough Fiber (Counterintuitively)

Most people blame fiber for their gas, but a chronically low-fiber diet actually creates the conditions for worse gas over time. A gut microbiome that doesn't get regular prebiotic fiber becomes less diverse — and a less diverse microbiome is less efficient at digestion, more prone to erratic fermentation patterns, and less resilient overall. [10]

When people who have been eating very little fiber suddenly add it back, they get significant gas at first — which confirms their suspicion that fiber is the problem. But the gas is temporary. A gut adapted to consistent fiber intake ferments more efficiently, produces more beneficial short-chain fatty acids, and generates less of the odorous byproducts that come from bacterial imbalance.

One option designed to support this kind of daily fiber routine without going overboard is Mammoth Fiber — 3g of psyllium husk plus 500mg of inulin (prebiotic chicory root fiber) to feed beneficial bacteria, alongside the DigeSEB® enzyme blend to support protein and carbohydrate digestion before fermentation gets a chance to create issues.

FAQ

How many farts per day is normal?

Research suggests the average person passes gas 14 to 23 times per day. Much of this is odorless and goes unnoticed. If you're significantly above this range and it's affecting your daily life, it's worth exploring whether one or more of the items on this list is driving it.

Can I eat cruciferous vegetables and beans without the gas?

With adaptation, yes. Your gut microbiome changes in response to what you consistently eat. Gradual introduction, cooking methods, portion size management, and digestive enzyme support can all help. The goal is never to eliminate nutritious foods — it's to manage the transition period while your gut catches up.

Do digestive enzymes actually reduce gas?

For specific types of gas, yes. Alpha-galactosidase helps with beans and cruciferous vegetables. Lactase helps with dairy. Protease enzymes help with protein fermentation. The benefit is getting more of the food broken down before it reaches bacteria in the large intestine. Results vary by person and cause of gas.

Is a lot of gas a sign of a gut health problem?

Occasional excessive gas is usually dietary. Persistent, severe, or painful gas — especially with other symptoms like diarrhea, constipation, significant bloating, or weight changes — can indicate conditions like IBS, SIBO, celiac disease, or other digestive issues that merit a conversation with a healthcare provider.

Does drinking water help with gas?

Staying hydrated supports overall digestion and helps fiber move through your system effectively, which can reduce gas indirectly. Water itself doesn't directly absorb or remove gas. Carbonated water, on the other hand, adds gas — so if you're substituting sparkling for still, that's worth testing.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to your diet or supplement routine.