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ARS Home » Midwest Area » St. Paul, Minnesota » Plant Science Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #104003
Title: SUPPLEMENTATION WITH DIETARY FIBER IMPROVES FECAL INCONTINENCE

Author
item BLISS, DONNA - UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA
item Jung, Hans Joachim
item SAVIK, KAY - UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA
item LOWRY, ANN - UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA
item LEMOINE, MELISSA - UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA
item JENZEN, LINDA - COLON ... SURGERY ASSOC
item WERNER, CHRISTIAN - UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA
item SCHAFFER, KILEY - UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA

Submitted to: Nursing Research
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/1/2000
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Significant numbers of Americans suffer from fecal incontinence, a condition where bowel movements are poorly controlled. This condition is exacerbated by liquid stools or diarrhea. Because dietary fiber consumption has been shown to affect stool composition and consistency of healthy people, it has been suggested that dietary supplementation with fiber for persons suffering from fecal incontinence might make their stools less loose and reduce incontinence. Consumption of 25 grams per day of psyllium or gum arabic fiber sources reduced fecal incontinence frequency by more than 50% compared to pre-treatment levels in adults who normally suffer from this condition. While stools were less loose when people consumed the dietary fiber supplement, water content of the stools was not changed. The improved stool consistency was apparently due to the fermentability of the fiber sources by colon bacteria. The results indicate that dietary fiber supplementation with highly fermentable fiber sources can improve stool consistency and reduce incontinence. These results will be of value to medical personnel treating adults who suffer from fecal incontinence and improve the health of individuals suffering from this condition.

Technical Abstract: Human studies have shown that dietary fiber affects stool composition and consistency. Since fecal incontinence has been shown to be exacerbated by liquid stools or diarrhea, management strategies that make stool consistency less loose or liquid may be useful. The objective of this study was to compare the effects of a fiber supplement containing psyllium, gum arabic, or a placebo in community-living adults who were incontinent of loose or liquid stools. Thirty-nine persons recorded diet intake and stool characteristics and collected their stools for 8 days prior to and at the end of a 31-day fiber supplementation period. During the fiber supplementation period, they ingested 25 g/d of Metamucil containing psyllium (Group 1), 25 g/d of gum arabic (Group 2), or 0.25 g/d of pectin as a placebo (Group 3) by random assignment. In the baseline period, the groups were comparable on all variables measured. In the fiber supplementation period, the proportion of incontinent stools of the groups ingesting the fiber supplements was less than half that of the group ingesting the placebo (Group 1: 0.17 +/- 0.07; Group 2: 0.18 +/- 0.07; Group 3: 0.50 +/- 0.05; F = 7.9, p = .002). In the fiber supplementation period, Group 3 had the greatest percentage of stools that were loose/unformed or liquid. Group 1 had the lowest percentage of loose/unformed or liquid stool. Stool frequency was not significantly influenced by intake of the fiber supplements compared to placebo. The supplements of dietary fiber appeared to be completely fermented by the subjects. Supplementation with dietary fiber containing psyllium or gum arabic was associated with a decrease in the percentage of incontinent stools and an improvement of stool consistency.