Measurement of Hydrogen Production in the Rat as an Indicator of Flatulence Activity

A method is reported for collecting and measuring the production of hydrogen and methane by the laboratory rat as an indication of flatulence activity of test diets. The system employs a life‐support system with frequent and regular monitoring of oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, and methane by gas chromatography. The duration of and time required for maximum production of hydrogen and methane varied among diets. Two parameters were selected for quantitation based on the typical hydrogen production pattern: the shape of the curve which represents the maximum rate of production, and the total quantity of hydrogen accumulated prior to the animal returning to its basal rate of hydrogen production. The age of the animals and their dietary history influenced their response to legume‐ and raffinose‐containing diets. The high degree of variability noted among rats required a large number of observations to be taken for each diet in order to report statistically significant differences among diets. This method offers an inexpensive, although time consuming, method of predicting flatulence activity.