Burping might be rude, but in reality, it’s a necessary release valve for gas that’s built up inside the human body.
I mean, sure, do it in private if you can, but don’t hold it inside.
There’s something called “No-Burp Syndrome” that makes it impossible for someone to burp – and what happens then?
The condition is officially dubbed retrograde cricopharyngeal dysfunction (R-CPD), and affects the cricopharyngeus muscle, which is a ring inside the throat.
Most of the time the muscle is contracted, but when you swallow, it relaxes to allow food and drink to pass into the esophagus. The muscle does the same thing in reverse when you burp…unless you have R-CPD.
When gas can’t exit the body the way it’s designed to, it can result in abdominal bloating, gurgling noises, and excessive flatulence.
Dr. Michael Pitman, who is Chief of the Division of Laryngology at Columbia University Vagelo College, wrote about it on the University’s website.
“What’s so cool is young people started talking about it on social media and helped each other realize what they all had so they could get the relief they needed. It’s so severe and the diagnosis is straightforward.”
In 2019, a 51-patient study looked at potential treatments, and found that a Botox injection into the dysfunctional muscle helped all of the patients regain the ability to burp.
“Botox is common for laryngeal disorders. It’s just new for this syndrome. Most patients get a permanent fix from a single shot, and those observations are backed up by other recently published data.”
Awareness is still an issue, though, which means there are probably a lot of people out there suffering in silence.
So the next time you feel a big burp coming on, try being thankful instead of embarrassed.
Some people out there can’t get that release at all.
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