Scientists Say Smelling Others Farts Is Good For You!

Next time you’re in a car with others and you need to fart, you may want to roll up the windows.  According to scientists, farts, which are small “spurts” of hydrogen sulfide gas, may help keep cells healthy and thus help ward off maladies such as strokes, heart attacks, dementia, diabetes, and even cancer.

Professor Matt Whiteman, of the University of Exeter Medical School, explained that when cells become stressed by disease they produce tiny quantities of hydrogen sulphide. This is because the gas helps sustain mitochondria, the powerhouse of a cell, and in turn keep the cell alive. If this process does not happen, the cells die.

Experts at the University have harnessed the power of this process by designing a new compound called AP39.  AP39 has been shown to protect stressed cells by releasing small quantities of hydrogen sulfide gas.

Without the gas, the cells eventually die. Attempting to prevent or reverse damage to mitochondria is vital to treating a variety of conditions such as stroke, heart failure, diabetes, arthritis, and dementia. Dr Mark Wood of Biosciences, at the University of Exeter, said:

Although hydrogen sulphide is well known as a pungent, foul-smelling gas in rotten eggs and flatulence, it is naturally produced in the body and could in fact be a healthcare hero with significant implications for future therapies for a variety of diseases.”

The study linked to the findings, which was published in the journal ‘Medicinal Chemistry Communications’, suggests that pre-clinical trials of the method are promising. Lab models of cardiovascular disease showed that when hydrogen sulphide gas was administered, more than 80 per cent of the cells survive under otherwise highly destructive conditions. Professors Whiteman and Wood are now working towards advancing the research to a stage where it can be tested in humans.

Source: The Independent