Everybody farts. The question is, how often? And how much gas is too much gas to pass? Science is now starting to answer that question. All it took was inventing a special device to fit into underpants.
Until now, no one has measured flatulence in people’s daily lives.
Brantley Hall is a microbiologist and part of a team that studies the metabolism of gut microbes. Working at the University of Maryland in College Park, the group was measuring how much hydrogen gut microbes make. They used a sensor in an oxygen-free chamber. But they weren’t getting results.
Let’s learn about the future of smart clothing
Frustrated, “we took the sensor out of the chamber, and we were like, ‘Screw it. We’re going to try to measure a fart.’” So, Hall stuck the device down his own pants and let rip. “And the signal was enormous!”
Inspired by that incident, his team devised what they’re calling “smart underwear.” Its sensor tracks toots, specifically the hydrogen part of farts. This hydrogen tracker is about as big as a quarter and snaps onto regular underwear.
The researchers described their in...
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