Sometimes the guts rumble. Others sound like a pipe. Stronger or quieter, more serious or more acute, the truth is that digestion has its own soundtrack emitted by the different organs. Technically, these noises are known as rumbling or bowel sounds, and they come from both the stomach and intestines.
This is how Marcos Carrasco, dietitian-nutritionist at the Hospital Clínic de Barcelona explains it. “These noises are caused by the peristaltic movements carried out by the intestine to mobilize the food previously digested by the stomach and allow the absorption of the different nutrients throughout the intestinal tract.”
For this reason, there are some foods that cause more noise than others. “Although there are no specific foods that cause these noises, it is true that foods richer in fiber, which form a larger food bolus, can cause gas and increase these noises, because the intestines need greater movements to mobilize them” .
However, when it is said that “our guts growl” we usually mean that we are hungry. How is it possible that if we have not ingested food, we also hear those noises, even louder? Carrasco explains that intestinal peristalsis, that is, the movements that the intestines make inside us (yes, they move), are maintained even if we have not eaten. “Since they are empty and there is no chyme (the second phase of the food bolus), they are heard even more.” In short, these noises are like an echo in an empty space, but inside our belly.
Peristalsis is essential for digestion and excretion, as it helps move food through the digestive system as well as urine from the kidneys to the bladder and bile from the gallbladder to the duodenum. To execute these movements, the smooth muscle fibers of the digestive wall produce a series of contractions and relaxations both in the digestive tract and in the ureters called ‘peristaltic waves’, and there are different types. The waves of propulsion are peristalsis proper, in which chyme is moved from one side to the other; the so-called segmental movements are, in fact, weak peristaltic movements that help to break up food and mix it with the secretions that will digest it. The peristaltic waves appear 3 times per minute and cause a displacement of 1 or 2 centimeters per second. About 5 hours after eating, the contractions that occur are those of hunger: every two hours and lasting 10 minutes. The various reflexes are controlled by the number, frequency, and strength of peristaltic waves at various stages of digestion.
Are these noises normal? When should we worry? “The vast majority of these noises are normal and indicate that the intestine is working,” says Carrasco, who explains that medical professionals with adequate training are capable of interpreting which part of the digestive system each noise comes from and why it is occurring. happening. “After a correct abdominal examination of the patient using a stethoscope and if the noises are accompanied by any digestive symptoms, such as vomiting, nausea, diarrhea, prolonged constipation or bleeding, the doctor can determine what the problem may be.”
