It’s true: Women do get more bloated than men – mainly because they have longer intestines

May be to allow them to absorb more water or fluid during childbearing. This means male colon is shaped like a horseshoe, whereas a woman’s is more ‘tangled’, making digestion more difficult.Weaker abdominal walls due to hormone differences are also to blame. It is the bane of many a woman’s life – but something men […]

May be to allow them to absorb more water or fluid during childbearing. This means male colon is shaped like a horseshoe, whereas a woman’s is more ‘tangled’, making digestion more difficult.
Weaker abdominal walls due to hormone differences are also to blame.

It is the bane of many a woman’s life – but something men often believe is a figment of the imagination.
Now, one U.S. doctor has declared that woman really do suffer more – largely because they have longer intestines.
Dr Robynne Chutkan, a gastroenterologist and founder of the Digestive Centre for Women in Washington D.C., explained to The Atlantic that there are major differences between the male and female digestive tracts.
Dr Robynne Chutkan says there are major differences between the male and female digestive tracts, with women’s colons on average 10cm more than men – which means they are more likely to suffer from bloating
Firstly, women have a longer colon than men – on average around 10cm longer – perhaps to allow them to absorb more water or fluid during childbearing.
‘Because you have to keep the amniotic fluid replete, and the circulation and blood volume increases during pregnancy,’ she explained in an interview to promote her new book, Gutbliss.
‘And what that extra length in the colon does is create this redundancy, these sort of extra twists and turns, and that’s why women are so much more bloated and constipated than their male counterparts.  ‘So there’s that difference in length as well as redundancy. Think of the male colon as kind of a gentle horseshoe, and the female colon as being a tangled-up Slinky.’
In the interview, she goes on to explain that men and woman have different shaped pelvises.
Because women’s are round and men’s are narrow, more of a woman’s colon drops down into the pelvis because the uterus, ovaries and fallopian tubes are taking up space above it – whereas men simply have to make room for the prostate.
 Hormones are also to blame, she says. Men’s higher levels of testosterone mean they have a strong abdominal wall – so their bowel is better held in place.
Women, however, have a weaker abdominal wall due to their hormones, so the bowels aren’t so contained, causing bloating. Pregnancy only makes this worse.
Add in the fluctuating levels of the female hormones oestrogen and progesterone, which also affect the digestive tract, and bloating is definitely more of an issue for women, she says.
Furthermore, constipation can be caused by a weak pelvic floor – most often a result of childbirth or ageing.
‘If you just do the basic things like give them a fibre supplement to help them get stuff out, and the problem is a pelvic floor issue, they’re actually going to feel worse; they’re going to be more bloated,’ she said.
Often, bloating is caused by irritable bowel syndrome, a condition that affects a staggering one in seven Britons (caused by an oversensitive gut, it leads to problems with bowel function and can trigger bloating, as well as cramps, constipation or diarrhoea).
While most people’s stomachs may swell just a couple of inches, others’ can actually double in girth in just one day, only to ‘deflate’ overnight until the next attack. Other bloating triggers include chewing gum, antibiotics and stress.
Stories culled from Mail Online