Humans can survive about a month without food, but only a maximum of five to seven days without drinking. Nevertheless, an empty stomach very quickly announces itself loudly and audibly. So when it comes to eating, the stomach talks. And: it “talks” especially when there is nothing to eat.
What happens?
Food enters the stomach through the esophagus. There it is mixed with gastric juices and liquefied into a food pulp. Over and over again, it is kneaded by the powerful stomach muscles to extract the nutrients and mix them with the gastric juices.
Once the stomach is almost empty, it contracts and air is forced through the stomach outlet into the intestine. This does not happen without making a noise – the stomach growls. Stomach growling is usually a clearly audible grumbling sound from the abdominal region.
Although it is referred to as stomach growling, these sounds can originate not only in the stomach, but also in the small intestine or deeper sections of the intestine.
Enteral nervous system
The gastrointestinal tract has an independent nervous system, called the enteric nervous system. This controls the typical movements – namely the contractions in the muscles of the gastrointestinal tract. This is why a full stomach can also report with a loud grumble. This is because – strictly speaking – it is intestinal sounds that come from the movement of the intestines and the processing of the food pulp.
This means that stomach growling and intestinal rumbling are completely natural and normal events.
