An Upcoming Trip to Europe

Mr. W was an elderly man who came to my office with complaints of abdominal gas and distention. He was concerned about an upcoming trip to Europe. Mr. W’s impaired hearing, combined with his preconceived notion of healthy bathroom habits, made my work more difficult than usual. Although he emphatically reported having excellent stools, from my perspective his bowel habits must not have been enough, because obviously putrefaction was creating a great deal of gas in his system. I fight this battle over what constitutes adequate bowel habits for my patients all the time. As it turned out, he was following my recommendations for fiber intake, but he was taking Milk of Magnesia only several times a week. Once he understood that he needed to take his Milk of Magnesia every day, he was home free. I understand he had a wonderful time in Europe. Most people with gas think that they have a serious problem, but most fortunately have just garden-variety constipation.