Garlic may confer a host of health benefits, and it certainly adds flavor to your favorite dishes, but it can also make you burp, which can be embarrassing. Discover why garlic causes gas, and what you can do to help control it.
Why Garlic Causes Burping
It’s a pretty common occurrence, and there are many reasons for burping after eating garlic. “Garlic, especially overcooked, tends to irritate the stomach lining for many people, and burping happens when you swallow too much air, eat something that disrupts the stomach, or you have anxiety,” explains Tarek Hassanein, MD, director of the Southern California GI & Liver Centers in Coronado, California. It may be embarrassing if it’s loud and in public, but “burping is a relief for the stomach as it decreases gastric distention,” he says.
In fact, the average healthy adult passes up to two liters of gas each day, according to UCLA Health. This amount can even increase as you age.
Those aren’t the only reasons that garlic can cause belching. This vegetable also has a lot of essential oil activity, says Robin Foroutan, RDN, a registered dietitian at the Morrison Center in New York City. “Garlic and its essential oil have such potent antimicrobial activity that it can kick out and kill bacteria in the gut,” she says. “And when this happens all at once, the balance of gut bacteria is disrupted and we might get a little bit gassy.”
Garlic is also high in fructan, a type of carbohydrate belonging to a group of carbs called oligosaccharides, which aren’t broken down well by your gut, according to Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. Fructans are a type of FODMAP, which stands for fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols, as noted by the Cleveland Clinic. High-FODMAP foods can disrupt the balance of good and bad bacteria in your gut if your body is not able to properly digest certain carbohydrates, says Foroutan.
Your gas could instead be caused by a case of small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), a condition that occurs when there’s an excess of bacteria in your small intestine, which leads to bloating and gas, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Garlic is also a common trigger for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) symptoms, which occur when stomach acid flows back up into the esophagus, causing heartburn, the Mayo Clinic notes. Over time, this acid can damage the lining of your esophagus. If garlic is a GERD trigger for you, avoid it.
Garlic and Burping: Strategies
Burping after eating garlic is typically not a cause for concern. That’s good news, especially since garlic may have anticancer properties and may also help manage high blood cholesterol levels and high blood pressure, according to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health.
“Everyone burps and farts, so there is no definition of a problem,” says Dr. Hassanein. “If, however, these issues begin to interfere with your overall life, you should go see your gastroenterologist.”
There are also ways to still enjoy garlic — minus the gas. Foroutan suggests a little trial and error to see how much garlic is too much for you. She says to “cut back on garlic and then see if you tolerate smaller amounts of garlic better.”
“Try not to overcook it,” Hassanein advises. “Some reports say chopping the garlic and letting it sit for about a half-hour before cooking can help with digestion. If you are very sensitive to garlic, try infusing it into olive oil, remove the garlic and cook with the oil. You will get all the flavor without the problems.”
“If you get a lot of gas and bloating, especially severe bloating and distention about two hours after a meal, or get progressively bloated throughout the day, it could be SIBO,” Foroutan says. If that’s happening, she suggests that you “try a low-FODMAP meal plan to see if it reduces the bloating,” noting that this may relieve symptoms. However, you should talk this over with your doctor, in case antibiotic treatment is needed to correct any bacteria overgrowth.
But, notes Hassanein, a balanced diet is the key to gut and overall health. “Gastroenterologists strongly believe in moderation,” he says. “If you eat too much of anything, you may find yourself with these issues.”
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