That makes a lot of sense. I searched and found a good article on the subject: https://www.sciencetimes.com/articles/48224/20240117/why-poop-smell-bad-science-behind-unpleasant-odor-stool.htm

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skatole?wprov=sfla1 (this is a volatile, airborne chemical)

This is from the Wikipedia article on human feces. Did not link it because content advisory: pictures of human feces. According to this, it is mostly volatile organic compounds, and I’m not seeing anything about smell aerosols.

Odor

Feces possesses physiological odor, which can vary according to diet and health status. For example, meat protein is rich in the amino acid methionine, which is a precursor of the sulfur-containing odorous compounds listed below.^{[12][13][14][15][16]} The odor of human feces is suggested to be made up from the following odorant volatiles:^[13]

• Methyl sulfides
  • methylmercaptan/methanethiol (MM)
  • dimethyl sulfide (DMS)
  • dimethyl disulfide (DMDS)
  • dimethyl trisulfide (DMTS)
• Benzopyrrole volatiles
  • indole
  • skatole
• Hydrogen sulfide (H₂S)

(H₂S) is the most common volatile sulfur compound in feces.^[13] The odor of feces may be increased when various pathologies are present, including:^[17]

• Celiac disease
• Crohn’s disease
• Ulcerative colitis^[18]
• Chronic pancreatitis
• Cystic fibrosis
• Intestinal infection, e.g. Clostridium difficile infection.^[19]
• Malabsorption
• Short bowel syndrome

Attempts to reduce the odor of feces (and flatus) are largely based on animal research carried out with industrial applications, such as reduced environmental impact of pig farming. See also: Flatulence#Management, odor. Many dietary modifications/supplements have been researched, including:

• Activated charcoal^[20] (In this study it was found that activated charcoal at a dose of 0.52g four times a day did not appreciably influence the liberation of fecal gases.)
• Bismuth subsalicylate^[21]
• Chloryphyllyn
• Herbs such as rosemary
• Yucca schidigera^[22]
• Zinc acetate^[22]

Ok, this is really weird. According to the flatus page, it implies that some people have complete voluntary control of their gas releases…?? It doesn’t come as a surprise to them??

Incontinence of flatus

“Gas incontinence” could be defined as loss of voluntary control over the passage of flatus. It is a recognised subtype of faecal incontinence, and is usually related to minor disruptions of the continence mechanisms. Some consider gas incontinence to be the first, sometimes only, symptom of faecal incontinence.^[14]