You be the judge: should my boyfriend stop farting in front of me?

He thinks it’s natural and funny. She thinks it’s gross and it kills the romance. Can you smell a rat?
Find out how to get a disagreement settled or become a You Be the Judge juror

The prosecution: Astrid

It’s offensive, it stinks, it’s disrespectful and it kills the romance between us

I will always go to the bathroom to fart rather than doing it in front of my boyfriend Alex. We’ve been together for eight years and I’ve always followed this rule. I expect him to do the same, but he rarely does.

Farting in front of anyone is not a symptom of societal collapse – but it is morally offensive and kills the romance when you do it in front of your partner. It also signifies a breakdown in respect. That may sound extreme but I stand by it. Farting is also really gross. You could be forcing fecal particles up people’s noses. Ew.

When Alex farts, I have to leave the room for at least five minutes to let it disperse. Alex claims that his farts don’t smell, but they definitely do. There is a total ban on open farts on my side of the relationship, but it’s not upheld by him.

When Alex wants to fart now, he tries to make a joke out of it. He will say: “Oh, those bugs are here again” and pretend to stamp on them. He’ll let out a fart when he’s stamping in an effort to disguise the sound. I’ll ask: “What’s that noise?” And he will say: “Oops! It’s the fart bugs.”

Recently he was trying to fix a doorknob and he said, “Oh no, it’s very squeaky,” and farted as he twisted it. I don’t think it’s all that funny but that’s his latest shtick. He has a very childish sense of humour, even though he’s 32.

I have issued ultimatums before, like: “If you fart I won’t touch you.” But he always comes over and cuddles me afterwards. Recently I farted in bed by accident and was mortified. I’d broken my rule but it was an accident. Alex reacted in a totally over the top way – , saying, “Oh my God, it stinks” – but it didn’t. Besides, mine are accidents; Alex just lets rip. He finds it incredibly funny whereas I feel shame and remorse. The other day I accidentally farted in front of a fan and it blew into Alex’s face. I was really embarrassed. Alex is trying to force me into lad territory with his farting habits and it takes away the romance. I’m not his mate, I’m his girlfriend. If you want to keep the sexual energy alive, don’t fart in front of each other.

The defence: Alex

Farting is healthy, and it’s funny, too. Besides, hers smell worse than mine

I hope I’ll continue to laugh about farts until the day I die. Farting is always funny and lightens the mood. I have experienced some great comic moments that were centered on a fart.

Upon reflection, though, I do find it funnier when one of my friends or I fart than when Astrid does. Is that sexist? Probably. But I’m just being honest. I agree with her that it takes away from the sexiness of the relationship. It’s not a good idea to just let rip in front of your partner all the time. But we’ve been together so long now, so it’s kind of like whatever.

Yes, it’s true that I do more of the farting in the relationship but I just can’t help it. She has always stressed that she finds farting in front of each other intolerable, but we’ve been together eight years now and it just sort of happens – better out than in, I always say. I see farting as pretty funny. And it is a completely natural part of being human.

The jokes that I make with the bug noises came about when Astrid and I were travelling in Colombia, and met an older man in a hostel. The guy farted within the first 30 seconds of meeting us. He said, “Oh no, it’s a trumpet-bug!” to lighten the mood and I found it hilarious. It’s stayed with me and I now use that line whenever I need to fart. Astrid is rarely amused, though.

I don’t think I’m the fartiest guy in the world. It just happens when it happens. It’s probably worse to hold them in; it can’t be healthy, so I never do that. I think Astrid saves hers up for when we’re reading in bed at night.

We’ll be having a lovely evening, and then all of a sudden there’s an almighty stink and I’ll have to abandon ship and get out of bed. Sometimes, she gets embarrassed and forces me out in anticipation. She will say “go away” and shoo me out of the room. Other times, though, she’ll drop a bomb without warning, which I don’t enjoy. Hers definitely smell worse than mine.

Both of us are vegetarians and eat very healthily, so that at least helps a bit with the smell, I think.

The jury of Guardian readers

Should Alex stop farting in front of Astrid?

Astrid’s assertion that being friends and being in a relationship are mutually exclusive is odd. Alex can’t change the fact that he finds farting funny. But Alex, remember: no double standards. It is weird that you don’t find hers funny, as farts should have an “equal opportunity” if anything.
Shristi, 21

Farting is natural and doing it in front of your partner shows you’re comfortable around one another. However, if it really disturbs Astrid and kills the sexual energy for her, maybe Alex should ease up on it a bit.
Ishan, 18

This smacks of double standards. Alex thinks his farts are amusing and inoffensive, whereas Astrid’s are unsexy and stinky. Alex should make more of an effort since it really upsets his partner. However, everybody farts – Astrid needs to relax a little.
Sara, 48

Farting is a natural bodily function like burping and going to the loo and, when in public, a simple “excuse me” suffices. We don’t always have control over farts and it is not always possible to stifle them. Alex should perhaps cut down on the jokes but Astrid should get real.
Jane, 72

You can’t expect people not to fart, and it’s unfair to make someone follow a rule that you obviously aren’t following yourself. I understand that there’s more of a societal pressure for women not to fart, but surely it would be better if parties were comfortable with it?
John, 36

Now you be the judge

In our online poll below, tell us: should Alex stop farting in front of Astrid?

The poll is now closed

Last week’s result

We asked if Andrea should be able to decide what time the lights go out in the bedroom, as it annoys her husband, Wilmer.

90% of you said yes – Andrea is innocent

10% of you said no – Andrea is guilty

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