Human bowel gas is well explained by the effects of lectins- common toxins
in grains that our bodies are not evolved to handle. Don Wiss posted up a
link to an excellent article on lectins for those with a heavy science
background (British Medical Journal). Although he's looking at other areas
like peptic ulcer and tonsillitis (farting is of little medical
consequence)- this paragraph gives a good reason why people produce extra
gas on Neolithic (grain containing) diets- the overgrowth of abnormal
bacteria and protozoa. As it is these bugs that produce the characteristic
scent of the fart, anything that changes them will effect the amount and the
character. He doesn't talk about enzyme inhibitors eg amylase inhibitors but
these probably provide extra goodies by preventing proper starch breakdown.
Also there are some funny sugars in beans eg raffinose, but that's all too
dim a memory now.

http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/318/7190/1023 excerpt:
Among the effects observed in the small intestine of lectin fed rodents is
stripping away of the mucous coat to expose naked mucosa and overgrowth of
the mucosa by abnormal bacteria and protozoa.14 Lectins also cause discharge
of histamine from gastric mast cells,15 which stimulates acid secretion. So
the three main pathogenic factors for peptic ulcer-  acid  stimulation,
failure of the mucous defence layer, and abnormal bacterial proliferation
(Helicobacter pylori) are all theoretically linked to lectins. If true,
blocking these effects by oligosaccharides would represent an attractive and
more physiological treatment for peptic ulcer than suppressing stomach acid.
The mucus stripping effect of lectins also offers an explanation for the
anecdotal finding of many allergists that a "stone age diet," which
eliminates most starchy foods and therefore most lectins, protects against
common upper respiratory viral infections: without lectins in the throat the
nasopharyngeal mucus lining would be more effective as a barrier to viruses.

As to the gorillas- well if anyone's brave enough to get close enough to a
gorilla to see how much gas it makes, well he's a better man than me (even
if they're a woman :-)- ).

Ben Balzer
[log in to unmask]
"The ideal diet for any animal is that which it eats in the wild. Humans are
no exception."
"Ask a dietitian or doctor  how to lose weight and you'll be told to eat
bread, corn, soy, cereals etc.. Ask a farmer how to fatten an animal and
you'll be told to feed it bread, corn, soy, cereals etc. There is a
discrepancy that needs explanation."

----- Original Message -----
From: alexs <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Sunday, December 19, 1999 7:51 PM
Subject: Re: [P-F] Sex and food


>Todd Moody opined:
>
>>..Additionally, the gorilla's vegetarian food
>> produces tremendous amounts of intestinal gas....
>
>This is idiotic.  Man-like?  Gorillas were here first; they
>should be well adapted to their food supply.

This statement is uninformed and unprovable. The most
current thought is that modern-era primates descended
from a common ancestor, not from each other. As for
"well adapted", the huge guts of gorillas and orang-utans
likely indicates the need for processing large amounts
of low-nutrient food, i.e. vegetation mostly. The huge
guts of some humans points toward an unsuitable or incom-
patible diet, at least according to Paleofood theory.

But then the originator of the "Bambi-cheese" conjecture
often makes such uninformed and unprovable assertions
based on logic or philosophy, not on scientific evidence.

At any rate, humans diverged from what became apes long
ago, and we have our own unique problems & issues.
Comparisons must be made carefully, especially in the
area of diet. What hasn't changed over the eons is the
need for plentiful exogenous ascorbate in all primates'
diets -- something most other primates in the wild and
zoos have no problem with, namely intakes in the
2-4 g/day range. Humans for the most part persist in
ingesting very low levels, even tho it's widely
available and very inexpensive.