Researchers in Maryland create Smart Underwear to find out how much you fart

Scientists at the University of Maryland are hoping to clear the air about a topic that’s been, well, a bit of a gas to study. They’ve created what they’re calling “Smart Underwear”—the first wearable device designed to measure human flatulence. You may have caught wind of the fact that they want volunteers from across the country to help them establish what’s normal when it comes to passing gas.

The research is no joke, even if the subject matter might cause some to expel a few laughs. For decades, doctors have struggled to help patients complaining about intestinal gas, largely because there’s been no good way to measure it objectively.

Brantley Hall, an assistant professor at UMD who’s leading the research, says the tiny device snaps discreetly onto any underwear and tracks intestinal gas production around the clock using electrochemical sensors.

“Think of it like a continuous glucose monitor, but for intestinal gas,” Hall said.

The device tracks hydrogen in flatus—the scientific term for what most of us call farts. And the findings are already raising eyebrows.

According to research published in Biosensors and Bioelectronics: X, healthy adults actually squeak one out an average of 32 times per day. That’s roughly double the 14 daily events often cited in medical literature.

Individual variation was extreme. Some study participants only broke wind four times a day, while others let loose as many as 59 times.

So why were the old estimates so far off? Previous research relied on people reporting their own gas production, which suffers from what many would call “blaming it on the dog.” Plus, it’s impossible to log what happens while you’re asleep.

“Objective measurement gives us an opportunity to increase scientific rigor in an area that’s been difficult to study,” Hall said.

All of that rigor may start to stink after a while.

The research team is now launching something called the Human Flatus Atlas—a nationwide effort to map the normal range of flatulence across hundreds of participants. The goal is to establish a baseline, similar to what exists for blood glucose or cholesterol.

“We don’t actually know what normal flatus production looks like,” Hall said. “Without that baseline, it’s hard to know when someone’s gas production is truly excessive.”

Here’s where it gets interesting. The researchers are recruiting three specific types of participants, and they’ve given them some creative names.

First, there are the “Zen Digesters”—people who consume high-fiber diets but experience minimal gas. These folks may hold the key to understanding how some people’s gut bacteria adapt to fiber without producing excessive tailwinds.

Then there are the “Hydrogen Hyperproducers.” That’s the scientific way of saying people who fart a lot. Studying these individuals could reveal what drives excessive gas production other than beer and immaturity.

And finally, there are what the researchers call “Normal People”—those who fall somewhere between the two extremes.

The study will also collect stool samples from the extreme groups to analyze their gut microbiomes and figure out which bacteria are responsible for all that hot air.

Because hydrogen in flatus is produced exclusively by gut microbes, tracking it provides a direct leak into when and how actively the gut microbiome is fermenting food.

The device successfully detected increased hydrogen production after participants consumed inulin, a prebiotic fiber, with nearly 95 percent sensitivity.

“We’ve learned a tremendous amount about which microbes live in the gut, but less about what they’re actually doing at any given moment,” Hall said. “The Human Flatus Atlas will establish objective baselines for gut microbial fermentation, which is essential groundwork for evaluating how dietary, probiotic or prebiotic interventions change microbiome activity.”

Those who just can’t pass up an opportunity to participate in the study can visit flatus.info for more information. Enrollment is open to adults 18 and older anywhere in the United States. Participants will receive a Smart Underwear device to wear day and night for the study period. The devices are shipped directly to participants’ homes.

Enrollment is limited, so those interested shouldn’t wait to let it rip.