strange side effect....burping
 

Hi....I did Atkins back in 2003 and lost approx. 90 pounds. During the process of losing weight I did a lot of burping. I actually had to try to control myself when I was out in public.

I am now doing Atkins again....started back in late December....and now I am burping again.....quite a bit.

Does anyone else have this side effect?

Hi Skinny,

I'm not sure if this is going to help or not... and I'm also curious if anyone else has had that experience.

I spent 4 weeks working with a Gastroenterologist last year and I asked her once about burping. She told me that burping is never an intestinal problem (malabsorption, etc) because the sphincter at the bottom of the stomach (pyloric sphincter) effectively closes off the stomach from the intestines... not allowing intestinal stuff to come up to the stomach.

Since this is so, she told me that the only way gas gets into our stomach is through swallowing. So when we burp a lot, it apparently means we are swallowing more air inadvertently--and there are a few reasons for doing so.

For example, if you have even a mild case of gastric reflux (heartburn), your body will try to cancel the effects of the acid in your esophagus by creating more saliva (base). You will swallow more than usual and every time you do, you will swallow some air.

Is it possible you have some heartburn?

Another common reason for burping is gallbladder dysfunction. Could you have that? Any pain after a fatty meal?

Or could you just be paying more attention to your meals and eating slower, more bites (thus, more swallowing)?

Are you chewing gum? (Which would lead to more swallowing?

Anyway... hope it helps and it wasn't too "technical."

Hi Droly,
Back in 2003 when I first started the Atkins way of eating the burping started approximately 10 days later. There is no acid reflux when the burping occurs.....it just seems like big air bursts. The burping sibsided just a little bit after a few months of eating the Atkins way. In December of 2003 I had my gallbladder removed but I still continued to eat the Atkins way. The burping continued but not as often. In early 2006 I stopped eating the Atkins way and started binge eating carbs.....this is when I developed acid reflux and needed medication.

I restarted Atkins in December 2008 and the burping started again; however, I no longer need the medication for acid reflux. The burping only seems to happen when I eat the Atkins way.

For example, this morning before eating breakfast I was already burping. After I eat it becomes worse and then after about an hour it subsides. There is no pain at all.

Could this be my body's way of burning keytones?

"Could this be my body's way of burning keytones?"

No, it doesn't work that way. Excess ketones are expelled from the body through exhaling and urinating. Burping comes from air in the stomach.

What's a typical day's menu look like when you're "on Atkins"??

Tril

I got curious and decided to do a little research on why we burp and what causes us to need to burp...

From MedMD:

"Belching or burping (eructation) is the voluntary or involuntary, sometimes noisy release of air from the stomach or esophagus through the mouth. Burping 3 to 4 times after eating a meal is normal and is usually caused by swallowing air. Other causes of burping include nervous habits or other medical conditions, such as an ulcer or a gallbladder problem."

And a GREAT list of reason a person might belch from WrongDiagnosis:

"Causes of Belching:
The following medical conditions are some of the possible causes of Belching. There are likely to be other possible causes, so ask your doctor about your symptoms.

Normal infant
Swallowing air
Habitual air swallowing
Mouth breathing (see Breathing symptoms)
Chewing gum
Poorly fitted dentures
Relaxed esophageal sphincter during breathing
Inferior wall myocardial infarction - rarely the cause but may cause belching with chest pain.
Emotional stress
Carbonated beverages
Food intolerances
Food allergy
Milk intolerance
Stomach acid deficiency
Rare belching of true foul-smelling intestional gas rather than swallowed air:
Gut fermentation
Gastroparesis
Vagotomy
Pyloric obstruction
Peptic ulcer
Intestinal tumor
Nervous habit of swallowing air during eating or talking
Gastrointestinal ulcers
Gallbladder disease
Pancreatic disease
Lactose intolerance
Pregnancy
Obesity
Hiatal hernia
Reflux esophagitis
Eating beans
Consumption of dairy
Consumption of certain vegetables - broccoli, cauliflower, corn
Irritable bowel syndrome
Malabsorption "

And this... but you'll have to go there to read it, I can't copy it. It's good and you should read it. It suggests having a Heidelburg test (the one for stomach acid, not dyslexia or your retinas!!) done if you can't figure out what's causing excessive burping.
http://www.mothernature.com/library/...ooks/16/35.cfm

HTH,
Tril