The benefit of a ‘fart walk’

A new health trend

The idea of fart walks was first presented to us all in a video that was uploaded by TikTok creator Mairlyn Smith (@mairlynthequeenoffibre). As reported here, she always puts on her running shoes and heads outside with her spouse about an hour after supper. She asks in the video, “Now, why do we do this?”. “Well, we eat a lot of fiber, so we have gas—everybody does—and, yeah, you fart while you walk. So that’s why I named it that.”

@mairlynthequeenoffibre

Smith may be onto something when she suggests that going for walks helps her “age wonderfully”; this is not just a sweet married habit. She mentions a few particular physical advantages: According to Smith, it lessens the chance of getting type 2 diabetes and eases any bloating that may occur after dinner.

GI doctors immediately joined the TikTok discussion to support Smith’s assertions. Naturally, you can not believe everything you read or hear on social media, especially when it comes to health, but according to NYU Langone Health gastroenterologist Lisa Ganjhu, DO, it turns out that even a short exercise session can help reduce feelings of bloating because a stroll after a meal helps to accelerate digestion.

“When you are moving, your GI tract is also moving,” Dr. Ganjhu said. This helps to encourage gut motility, or intestinal movement, which is necessary for adequate food digestion. “There needs to be a motion to help move the food along,” she says. “When you’re walking and moving around, you’re basically helping the motility part of the digestive tract.” That may help to explain why when you eat while on an airplane or train, you frequently feel so bloated.

Studies support this: Exercise after a meal has been demonstrated to accelerate colon transit and stomach emptying. A different study published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology found that even a little exercise after a meal was enough to dramatically minimize bloating. Furthermore, according to Dr. Ganjhu, increasing your gut motility and eliminating food rapidly can help with GERD, or acid reflux disease, as there is less time for the digestive acids to perform their job.

Regarding the assertion that taking a fart walk can prevent diabetes? Exercise of any kind can assist in controlling your blood sugar, according to Dr. Ganjhu. And here’s why taking a stroll after dinner can be a terrific way to do it: A stroll after eating can help balance your blood sugar levels, according to a study published in the journal Nutrients. This is crucial because repeated spikes can lower your body’s sensitivity to insulin, raising your chance of type 2 diabetes.

The fact that you can enjoy the benefits of the fart walk even after a short stroll is another fantastic thing about it. A 2021 study found that bloating can be reduced with as little as 10 minutes of activity. A study published in the European Journal of Applied Physiology and Occupational Physiology discovered that while high-intensity exercise, such as running, decreased stomach emptying, moderate walking dramatically enhanced it.

“It’s just walking and passing gas,” said Dr. Ganjhu. “There is no specific time or distance, or intensity required.”

Avoid overthinking the fart walk. After eating, you will probably feel even somewhat better with any form of light exercise, and not just in terms of your physical health. Smith claims that going on fart walks with her partner helps them rekindle their romance and adds a social element to their day.

“And we both think farts are funny, which adds to the laughter every evening,” Smith says.