Specifically, it occurs when the cows eat high volumes of clover or other nitrogen fixing plants (most legumes fall in to this category). Ruminants produce a lot of gas in their digestive process, because their stomachs are designed to ferment their food, allowing them to better access highly fibrous food sources like grass. Normally, they belch or fart the gas away, but in the case of nitrogen fixing clovers, they produce too much gas to be able to burp and fart away, and they end up with fatal bloating!
I remember learning this in school in rural Australia. The most amazing thing is that I still remember it :P
Stupid question, but could a similar thing happen to a human? I don’t belch/burp, and I can get insanely bloated. I should probably see a doctor to see if this is normal or if there’s a treatment, but it’s kind of embarrassing!
It might be a rare condition called RCPD where a muscle in your esophagus is too strong. The treatments are a shot of Botox to weaken the muscle, or getting it cut a little bit if Botox doesn’t work.
yeah I think the extra ammonia and hydrogen gas emitted from the nitrogen fixation process fucks with the regular breakdown of sugars to make more CH4 instead of CO2.
The products of the nitrogen fixation make the environment inside the stomach less aerobic so you end up with the anaerobic breakdown of sugars.
Specifically, it occurs when the cows eat high volumes of clover or other nitrogen fixing plants (most legumes fall in to this category). Ruminants produce a lot of gas in their digestive process, because their stomachs are designed to ferment their food, allowing them to better access highly fibrous food sources like grass. Normally, they belch or fart the gas away, but in the case of nitrogen fixing clovers, they produce too much gas to be able to burp and fart away, and they end up with fatal bloating!
I remember learning this in school in rural Australia. The most amazing thing is that I still remember it :P
Stupid question, but could a similar thing happen to a human? I don’t belch/burp, and I can get insanely bloated. I should probably see a doctor to see if this is normal or if there’s a treatment, but it’s kind of embarrassing!
It might be a rare condition called RCPD where a muscle in your esophagus is too strong. The treatments are a shot of Botox to weaken the muscle, or getting it cut a little bit if Botox doesn’t work.
I have issues with it intermittently.
Holy shit this is 100% me! Holy shit it has a name!!! Thank you!!!
Not a doctor, and you should definitely talk to one before trying it, but I have found Eno to be remarkable in solving gaseous bloating.
Thank you!
But wouldn’t nitrogen lead to ammonia? Methane is ch4, with no nitrogen? Or does nitrogen fixing vegetation somehow induce other digestion paths?
yeah I think the extra ammonia and hydrogen gas emitted from the nitrogen fixation process fucks with the regular breakdown of sugars to make more CH4 instead of CO2.
The products of the nitrogen fixation make the environment inside the stomach less aerobic so you end up with the anaerobic breakdown of sugars.