Do Fizzy Drinks Make You Fart or Burp?

Fizzy drinks are generally more likely to make you burp or feel bloated than to make you fart. The carbon dioxide in the drink is released in your stomach, and some of it soon escapes through your mouth. Gas that is not burped out may travel into the intestines and eventually leave as a fart. Other ingredients in sweetened drinks can also increase the amount of gas produced by gut bacteria. A bubbly drink can therefore get the orchestra playing at both ends, but burps and farts come from different parts of the digestive tract.

Where do the bubbles in fizzy drinks come from?

Carbonated water, soft drinks and sparkling mineral water contain carbon dioxide dissolved under pressure. When you open the bottle or can, the pressure drops and the carbon dioxide starts forming visible bubbles. More gas is released as the drink warms up and enters your stomach.

The carbon dioxide in your drink is not an invisible fart waiting to be unleashed. It is a gas that adds to the amount of gas and pressure in your stomach. Your body tries to release the excess, and the shortest escape route often runs back up the oesophagus and out through your mouth. The result is a burp, which might be a discreet little puff or an announcement loud enough to make everyone at the table look up from their plates.

If an impressive burp calls for a suitably dry remark, Kimi Räikkönen’s quotes offer inspiration for keeping the follow-up brief.

Pouring the drink briskly into a glass releases some of the carbon dioxide before you take a sip. A fizzy drink that has been sitting in a glass for a while will generally be less bubbly than one enjoyed straight from a freshly opened bottle.

Burping and farting are different things

Burping releases gas from the stomach through the mouth. Farting releases gas from the intestines through the anus. Bloating, meanwhile, is a feeling of fullness or tightness. It does not, by itself, mean that there is an unusually large amount of gas in your intestines.

The gas from a fizzy drink reaches the stomach first, so burping is a natural way for it to escape. However, not all of it necessarily comes straight back up. Gas that moves beyond the stomach may continue through the intestines and eventually leave through the other exit.

Gas also forms in the intestines through a different process. Microbes in the large intestine break down carbohydrates that have not been fully absorbed in the small intestine. This fermentation produces gas. For a closer look at what affects a fart’s smell, Liekkipieru’s article exploring whether a warm fart smells worse than a cold fart takes the discussion further.

Other ingredients can contribute to gas symptoms

It is worth looking beyond the bubbles at what else is in the drink. Plain carbonated water generally contains water and carbon dioxide, so its effects mainly relate to the gas in the drink. Soft drinks, energy drinks and flavoured waters may also contain sugars, sweeteners, acids and other ingredients.

Some people absorb certain carbohydrates less efficiently than others. The unabsorbed portion can reach the large intestine, where bacteria break it down and produce more gas. In that case, the carbon dioxide from the bottle and the gas produced in your gut are two separate things, even if you notice both during the same evening.

Sugar-free does not automatically mean symptom-free for your stomach. Some products contain sugar alcohols such as sorbitol, mannitol, xylitol, erythritol or maltitol. Their names often end in “ol”. Not all sugar-free drinks contain them, so check the ingredients list.

Why does one person burp while another feels the bubbles lower down?

Your experience can vary depending on how much you drink, how quickly you drink it, what else you eat and your individual digestion. Drinking through a straw, gulping and talking while drinking can also increase the amount of air you swallow. Your stomach may then receive ordinary air as well as carbon dioxide.

How sensitive you are to stretching in the digestive tract can also affect how you feel. Two people can drink the same amount of sparkling water and describe very different experiences. One lets out a magnificent burp and gets on with the day, while the other feels as though their stomach has become a bubbling chemistry lab.

The meal you have with your drink may also contain carbohydrates that contribute to gas. That can make it difficult to identify a single culprit. A burger, onions, a sweetened drink, hurried eating and a large portion may all join the same wind orchestra.

Clues that may help you identify the cause

• Burping starts soon after drinking: carbon dioxide from the drink or air swallowed while drinking is a likely explanation.
• Your upper abdomen feels full: stretching in the stomach can cause a feeling of pressure even while you are drinking.
• Only sweetened drinks cause symptoms: compare the ingredients and try plain carbonated water separately.
• Farting increases later: gas travelling into the intestines or poorly absorbed carbohydrates in the drink may play a part.
• Using a straw makes you feel worse: you may be swallowing more air at the same time.
• Still drinks cause symptoms too: carbonation may not be the main cause.

How to check whether fizzy drinks affect you

1. Start with a simple drink. Try plain, unflavoured carbonated water first, so sugars and sweeteners do not complicate your observations.
2. Keep the amount moderate. Do not begin your investigation by drinking a large bottle in one sitting.
3. Drink slowly without a straw. This can help reduce the amount of air you swallow while drinking.
4. Note the symptom and when it happens. Distinguish between burping, feeling bloated, visible abdominal swelling and farting.
5. Compare it with a still alternative. Drink plain water in a similar situation and notice whether you feel any different.
6. Change one thing at a time. Avoid changing your entire diet, portion sizes and meal schedule at once.

A single experiment does not establish cause and effect. Noticing the same pattern on several different days provides a better clue to whether a particular drink agrees with your stomach. There is no need to build a completely fart-free laboratory at home.

When should you get symptoms checked?

Occasional burping, farting and bloating after meals are part of normal digestion. If fizzy drinks repeatedly make you uncomfortable, you can cut back on them. However, there is no need to restrict your diet extensively on the strength of one bubbly suspect.

Speak to a healthcare professional if your gas symptoms change suddenly, regularly disrupt daily life or occur alongside severe abdominal pain, persistent diarrhoea or constipation, vomiting, blood in your stools or unintentional weight loss. There may be more behind the symptoms than an overenthusiastically fizzy drink.

The bubbles usually head upwards first

Fizzy drinks are generally more likely to make you burp than fart because their carbon dioxide is released in the stomach first. Some gas may still travel into the intestines, and other ingredients in the drink can increase the gas produced there. To understand your own reaction, compare carbonated water with still water while keeping other factors as similar as possible. That way, the bubbles in the bottle do not have to take the blame before the evidence has had a chance to surface.