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The Doctors Book of Home Remedies II: Belching

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Belching

In some parts of the world, the ultimate compliment you can pay the host after a hearty, sumptuous feast is one prolonged, expressive belch.

Unfortunately, that kind of complimentary noise won't earn you the Best Manners Award at Aunt Martha's Sunday buffet. But polite or not, belching does come naturally: A study has shown that healthy young people belch an average of 11 times in 20 hours--excluding mealtimes.

The gas you release while belching comes from your upper gastrointestinal tract. It got there because you swallowed it while talking, eating or drinking. The air that goes down with every swallow just adds to the air already in your stomach--and all this trapped air speaks loud and clear when it comes back up.

What to do when belching becomes a bother? Try these tips from our experts.

Eat modest meals at a measured pace. "Eat small meals, and eat slowly," advises Nicholas Talley, M.D., Ph.D., a gastroenterologist and associate professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. Dr. Talley also recommends not eating and drinking at the same time to reduce repetitive swallowing.

Banish balloon food. Certain foods and beverages are particularly gassy or puffed up with air. Watch out for "carbonated or foaming beverages, or dishes made with beaten eggs or whipped cream," says Ronald L. Hoffman, M.D., director of the Hoffman Center for Holistic Medicine in New York City.

Break those air-grabbing habits. How else do you swallow air when you're not eating? According to Dr. Hoffman, smoking, sipping through a straw, chewing gum and sucking hard candies can add to the trapped air in your stomach and contribute to belching problems. Drinking from water fountains, cans and bottles can also be blamed. Try to avoid munching or chewing when you're on the go. And when you want a sip of something, try to drink calmly rather than grabbing a gulp on the go.

Relax for relief. "Work to reduce your anxiety level," recommends Dr. Talley. "Sometimes you're swallowing air because you're anxious." Among the best stress relievers are regular exercise, meditation and soothing activities such as taking a hot bath.

Try These Belch-Busting Exercises

Plenty of fourth-graders learn how to gulp air and produce a command performance of belching. And it stands to reason that any talent that can be learned can also be unlearned-so why not train your innards not to belch?

Here's a way to take the belch potential out of your sips and swallows, recommended by Marvin L. Hanson, Ph.D., chairman of the Department of Communication Disorders at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. To get more control of your swallowing, Dr. Hanson recommends practicing these steps as you swallow any liquid.

Lift your tongue up.
Keep your teeth together or slightly parted.
Sip, but don't slurp, the liquid. (Don't swallow yet.)
Close your lips and pull them in a bit.
Squeeze your tongue up.
Swallow.

Though these steps may feel forced at first, just keep practicing until you're swallowing smoothly. With repetition, belch-free sipping can become a habit.

Don't try to belch. Many people don't realize that a forced belch will backfire, says Dr. Talley. When you try to force up the trapped air, he says, you often swallow more air at the time or just afterward, so you end up getting more air down than you actually remove. The bottom line: "Don't force yourself to belch," says Dr. Talley.

Do a trial run of antacids. Some people who feel they have excess stomach gas may benefit from over-the-counter antacids in standard doses, says Dr. Talley. That's because stomach acid sometimes reacts with food to create excess carbon dioxide in your stomach. If you do take antacids, begin with a short "trial run" to see whether they're effective, he suggests.

Forget the plop-plop-fizz-fizz. Effervescent over-the-counter remedies like Alka-Seltzer are no help to belchers, says Dr. Hoffman. Like carbonated beverages, these remedies make you belch even more, because you're swallowing more air along with the remedy.

Defoam those bubbles with simethicone. An ingredient in over-the-counter products like Maalox Plus and Mylanta, simethicone is a "defoaming" agent. "Simethicone works well for gas in the small intestine and reduces belching," Dr. Hoffman says. This belch blaster smashes up the biggest gas bubbles and breaks them into smaller ones that burst more easily.

Let your coffee cool a bit. "When you slurp a hot beverage, you swallow air," says Marvin L. Hanson, Ph.D., chairman of the Department of Communication Disorders at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. To get around that problem, simply let your coffee cool a bit before you take a steamy sip.

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