OK, sure, everyone has to pass gas at some point during the day (the average person does it between 14 and 23 times a day), and doing so helps our bodies get rid of the excess air we swallow, specifically when we eat. But even so, that fact gives little comfort when you’re the one frequently burping in the middle of a fancy dinner party or group get-together.
Whether or not you feel like you burp excessively or you’d just like to stop burping period, there are a few factors and lifestyle changes that can help make burping much less of an issue in your daily life!
Ditch the Bubbly Beverages
Certain foods tend to create more gas when being digested, such as beans, broccoli, and cabbage, but what you drink can also play a part in how much you’re burping. Carbonated beverages, which include seltzer, soda, beer, and spiked alcohols, are all culprits, causing you to swallow more air as you drink them from the carbonation in the bottle or can. This in turn is more likely to make you feel bloated and burp in an effort to push that air out of your stomach. And if you drink these beverages with a straw (mainly soda or seltzer, hopefully not beer!), that’s just another route for more air to get into your digestive tract and make you frequently burp.
Nix the Chewing Gum or Sucking Candy
You might be a fan of chewing a stick of gum or a mint after a meal, but doing so may cause you to swallow more air than you normally would in a shorter amount of time. Add that to your body digesting a meal that you just ate (which inevitably creates some gas in the process no matter what you’re eating), and that gum or hard candy may result in more burping post-dinner than you’d like.
Stop Smoking
Aside from the stack of other health reasons pointing to why you shouldn’t smoke, if you’re looking for a way to stop burping, you’ll find that curbing your cigarette habit is a good start. Not only are you inhaling harmful chemicals and toxins when you smoke, but you’re also sucking in a lot of air that your body then has to get rid of, which may be done through burping.
Have a Plan B After Eating
Even if you stick to water, skip the gum and mints after a meal, and have never smoked a day in your life, you may find you still have to burp. That’s because burping can be caused by a number of things that can change periodically in your life, from food intolerances you may not be aware of to even certain prescription medications.
For those moments when gas hits out of nowhere, having Gas-X Extra Strength Chewable Tablets on your pocket is a sure-fire way to relieve the issue fast, helping with pressure, bloating, and discomfort in minutes. Bonus: they come in both cherry and peppermint, meaning you can replace the burp-inducing mint and chew on one of these instead!
