KEY POINTS:
One of the great myths of the sexes - celebrated in a Tui billboard reading "Chicks never fart" has been exploded.
The study of digestive health has found that 45 per cent of women experienced gas at least two to three times a week. And if it's news to you, that's because women just don't talk about it.
Only 12 per cent of women are likely to tell their friends they're experiencing some sort of discomfort, even though three-quarters feel embarrassment when it strikes during social situations.
The survey of almost 600 women was carried out by Anchor's low-fat probiotic yoghurt brand Symbio, which is promoting a 14-day programme to reduce digestive problems.
The company says the programme - run through www.abetteryou.co.nz - has already registered 10,000 people.
The survey found that 62 per cent of women suffer digestive discomfort of some sort at least once a week.
About 45 per cent talked about their problems to their partners, a quarter told family and 18 per cent talked to their doctor.
Sue McCarty, chief executive of the Auckland-based Via finishing school, said it was a "complete myth women don't pass wind".
The school, described by Britain's Daily Mail as "perhaps the most exclusive finishing school in the world", included digestion problems as part of its programme.
The key to avoiding problems was a good diet, exercise and a moderate alcohol intake.
For those suffering, her advice was: Better out than in. She said women here had less to be concerned about. "We're in New Zealand, remember.
"Lots more things are acceptable here than in other cultures."
