sulfur burping
I don`t know about you but I love burping :). I know it`s disgusting, and my family and friends agree, but I find it very amusing.

However, even I must admit that it can be quite embarrassing and unpleasant when sulfur burps appear! Let`s face it, foul smelling rotten eggs burps are not likely to make you the center of the attention (not in the good way at least), so it is only natural that you want to get rid of them as soon as possible!

Well, you are in luck as today this will be the main topic of our article – addressing sulfur burps! But first, let`s talk a bit more about burping.

The Mechanics Of Burping

First of all, I`d like to point out that burping, or belching, is perfectly normal. Burping is just a way for our body to expel the excess air from our stomach through our mouth. When our stomach expands, we may swallow “too much” air, which we then release through belching.

We can roughly divide burping causes into 4 different categories:

  • Aerophagia
  • Food
  • Medication
  • Health condition

Aerophagia


Aerophagia is nothing more than a fancy word for swallowing excessive air. It usually occurs when:

  • We eat or drink too quickly
  • Talking while eating
  • Smoking
  • Nose breathing
  • Chewing gum

Food

We already stated that eating too fast or talking while eating might lead to belching.

Medication

Some medication might cause burping, but we will go more in-depth here in the “sulfur burps causes” section of this article.

Conditions

Certain medical conditions can lead to excessive belching, those are:

  • GERD – gastroesophageal reflux disease
  • Gastritis
  • Ulcers
  • Lactose intolerance

Most Common Causes Of Sulfur Burps

burp inducing foods
Now that we know what burps are and what`s causing them, it is time to talk more about sulfur burps and why does it sometimes smell like rotten eggs when we burp.

The main cause of this foul smell is sulfur-containing gas hydrogen sulfide (H2S) which is produced inside our stomach and then it goes outside through the mouth. Certain foods, especially heavy proteins, stay longer in the stomach and intestines so the process of breaking them down may lead to an increased hydrogen sulfide build-up. Once these gasses reach “critical mass” they will get released from our body in a form of a smelly sulfur burp.

Now we are moving on to the causes of rotten egg burps… Just like with the regular burps, we will roughly divide the causes of sulfur burps into 4 different categories:

  • Infections
  • Poor eating habits
  • Medication containing sulfur
  • Bacterial overgrowth

Infections

The leading medical causes of foul smelling sulfur burps are gastro-intestinal infections.

GI infections can be caused by viruses, bacteria or parasites and will often lead to diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal pain and cramps. Certain bacteria that cause GI problems can also lead to sulfur belching.

Poor Eating

Eating plays a huge role in the development of sulfur burps and is its leading worldwide cause. But we are not just talking about junk food here, there are plenty of good, healthy foods that can lead to a nasty smelling burp. Here are just some of the foods linked to rotten egg smelling burps:

  • Eggs
  • Red meats
  • Poultry
  • Dairy products
  • Beans and soy
  • Most commonly used vegetables
  • Canned foods
  • Coffee, tea, and soft drinks

Taking Sulfur Filled Medication

Sometimes, the doctor might prescribe you with a sulfur based medication, unaware of your sulfur burps problems. This is why we advise you to read the labels yourself, or simply let the doctor know and ask them for a different kind of medication.

Bacterial Overgrowth

The number of different bacteria in our body, though huge, is in a delicate balance and when this balance is disrupted problems may occur. Some common diseases which may disrupt this balance (and are linked to sulfur burps) are Crohn`s and Celiac diseases.

Crohn`s disease is a disease which can affect the GI tract from mouth to anus, literally. Its symptoms often include diarrhea, abdominal pain, anemia, skin rashes and, in some cases, may cause rotten eggs burps.

Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder where the ingestion of gluten leads to damage in the small intestine.

Precautions and Prevention

Of course, you can never accurately anticipate the appearance of sulfur burps, but you can actively work on preventing them from ever affecting you.

You should consider some of the following precautions:

  • Drinking plenty of water
  • Cutting back on alcohol and soft drinks
  • Cutting back on sugar
  • Cutting back on canned and fast foods
  • Eating foods that are rich in fibers and can be easily digested

How To Treat Sulfur Burps?

Treating sulfur burps will, and should, start with you changing some of your daily habits and routines. Of course, we are going to offer you a few “quick fixes” to address your burping straight away!

Quick Fixes

If you suspect a disease, bacterial disbalance, start to vomit or spot any other disease symptoms we`ve listed above, you should visit a doctor. Taking antibiotics your doctor prescribes should address the problem quickly and you will be free of that nasty rotten egg smell.

If you are taking medication make sure you read the labels and note when your burping started to see if it corresponds to the time you started taking a new medication. If it does, and your medication happens to be sulfur based, ask your doctor for a replacement.
honey and lemon for sulfur burps
You should also actively combat toxin build-up in your body. One of the best ways to do this is to regularly drink herbal tea. Another awesome way to fight toxins is to drink a glass of warm water with lemon and a teaspoon of honey. It will take some time to get used to the taste, it`s quite specific, but knowing that it is good for you should be enough!

Long-term treatment

Long-term treatment will largely depend on you and your willingnes to change (unless you are suffering from a specific medical condition).

I`m sure that some of you freaked out after seeing all the types of food we`ve listed as potential causes for sulfur burps, does this mean you must immediately stop consuming them? Of course not, you just need to be smart about it and eat them in smaller quantities.

Altering your diet, making sure you eat more foods rich in fiber, drinking water and engaging is moderate sports activity is usually more than enough to deal with the problem of sulfur burping. Whatever you decide to do, though, it is always best to speak to your doctor first!