Activated Charcoal and gas and bloating

What 2 graded rows on activated charcoal agree on for gas and bloating, and where they differ. Counted side by side, never averaged.

Consensus finder Rows from the Activated Charcoal page, reviewed Oct 21, 2026 How it decides

What the rows agree on

Each block and row is one graded row from the Activated Charcoal page, with its PubMed record.

Supplement

Activated Charcoal Choose another

2 rows · 104 people

Split. 1 row found an improvement and 1 found no difference.

No difference

Improved

Each block is one evidence row, sized by how many people it enrolled, with its grade inside.

From the rows

Trial sizeWhen published

The best-graded row, grade D, is a randomized trial of 99 people (1986) and found an improvement.

The row that found an improvement was larger: 99 people, against 5 people for the row that found no difference.

The row that found no difference is newer (1999) than the row that found an improvement (1986).

1 improved · 1 no difference

Grade DColonic gas (breath hydrogen) and bloating after lactulose · Improved
RCT · n 99 · 1986 · Adults in the USA (n=30) and India (n=69)
Dose not stated in the abstract · Single test sessions
Compared with placebo, charcoal lowered breath hydrogen and reduced bloating and cramps in both groups (P<0.05).
Row on the Activated Charcoal page · PubMed 3521259 (opens PubMed)
Grade DFecal sulfur gases, total gas and symptoms · No difference
Open-label trial · n 5 · 1999 · Healthy volunteers (USA)
0.52 g four times daily (2.08 g/day) · 1 week
No significant reduction in sulfur-containing gases, total fecal gas or abdominal symptoms; lab tests suggested charcoal becomes saturated in the gut.
Row on the Activated Charcoal page · PubMed 9934757 (opens PubMed)