Why Do We Burp?

What You'll Learn

• Burping happens when extra air gets trapped in your stomach and comes back up
• You swallow air when you eat fast, drink fizzy drinks, or talk while chewing
• The stomach squeezes the air back up through your mouth — that's a burp!
• Fizzy drinks have carbon dioxide gas bubbles that make you burp more
• Burping is your body's way of releasing extra pressure

Words to Know

Burp

The sound air makes coming back up from your stomach

"I burped after drinking soda."

Gas

Invisible air that takes up space

"Gas built up in my stomach."

Stomach

The stretchy bag that mushes up food

"My stomach squeezed the air out."

Carbon dioxide

The gas in fizzy drinks that makes bubbles

"Carbon dioxide makes soda bubbly."

Check What You Learned

Fun Facts

• Burping (eructation) is the release of gas from the stomach through the mouth

  Source: American Gastroenterological Association

• Swallowing air (aerophagia) is the primary cause — you swallow air when eating, drinking, or talking

  Source: Mayo Clinic

• Eating fast, drinking through a straw, and chewing gum increase air swallowing

  Source: Cleveland Clinic

• Carbonated beverages contain dissolved CO2 gas that releases in the stomach

  Source: American Chemical Society

• The stomach has stretch receptors that trigger the burp reflex when too full of gas

  Source: Journal of Gastroenterology

• The loudest recorded burp was 109.4 dB by Paul Hunn (UK, 2009) — as loud as a chainsaw

  Source: Guinness World Records