Skip to main content
PMC home page
Gut logoLink to Gut
. 1986 Feb;27(2):164–169. doi: 10.1136/gut.27.2.164

Bowel function measurements of individuals with different eating patterns.

G J Davies, M Crowder, B Reid, J W Dickerson
PMCID: PMC1433202  PMID: 3005140

Abstract

Bowel function was assessed in 51 subjects: 10 women and seven men who habitually consumed an omnivorous, vegetarian, or vegan diet. The subjects on these diets had a mean intake of fibre of 23 g, 37 g, and 47 g respectively. Mean transit times were variable and not significantly different between the groups. Vegans, however, had a greater frequency of defecation and passed softer stools. All measurements of bowel function were significantly correlated with total dietary fibre. As dietary fibre increased mean transit time decreased, stool frequency increased and the stools became softer. Men produced a greater quantity of softer, less formed faeces than women. During the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle women excreted harder stools and had a significantly longer mean transit time. The finding that mean transit time was more highly correlated with faecal form than any of the other bowel function measurements could be of practical importance.

Full text

PDF
164

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Burkitt D. P., Walker A. R., Painter N. S. Effect of dietary fibre on stools and the transit-times, and its role in the causation of disease. Lancet. 1972 Dec 30;2(7792):1408–1412. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(72)92974-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Christofides N. D., Ghatei M. A., Bloom S. R., Borberg C., Gillmer M. D. Decreased plasma motilin concentrations in pregnancy. Br Med J (Clin Res Ed) 1982 Nov 20;285(6353):1453–1454. doi: 10.1136/bmj.285.6353.1453. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Cummings J. H., Jenkins D. J., Wiggins H. S. Measurement of the mean transit time of dietary residue through the human gut. Gut. 1976 Mar;17(3):210–218. doi: 10.1136/gut.17.3.210. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Davies G. J., Crowder M., Dickerson J. W. Dietary fibre intakes of individuals with different eating patterns. Hum Nutr Appl Nutr. 1985 Apr;39(2):139–148. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Drossman D. A., Sandler R. S., McKee D. C., Lovitz A. J. Bowel patterns among subjects not seeking health care. Use of a questionnaire to identify a population with bowel dysfunction. Gastroenterology. 1982 Sep;83(3):529–534. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Gear J. S., Brodribb A. J., Ware A., Mann J. I. Fibre and bowel transit times. Br J Nutr. 1981 Jan;45(1):77–82. doi: 10.1079/bjn19810078. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Goldberg M. J., Smith J. W., Nichols R. L. Comparison of the fecal microflora of Seventh-Day Adventists with individuals consuming a general diet. Implications concerning colonic carcinoma. Ann Surg. 1977 Jul;186(1):97–100. doi: 10.1097/00000658-197707000-00013. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. González E. R. New era in treatment of dysmenorrhea. JAMA. 1980 Oct 24;244(17):1885–1886. doi: 10.1001/jama.244.17.1885. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Holm C. N., Hansen L. P. Plantefibre og gastrointestinal passagetid. Ugeskr Laeger. 1975 Mar 3;137(10):561–565. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Kuhnlein U., Bergstrom D., Kuhnlein H. Mutagens in feces from vegetarians and non-vegetarians. Mutat Res. 1981 Feb;85(1):1–12. doi: 10.1016/0165-1161(81)90281-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Lush B. The scope of research in geriatric medicine. Age Ageing. 1974 Feb;3(1):1–2. doi: 10.1093/ageing/3.1.1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Miettinen T. A., Tarpila S. Fecal beta-sitosterol in patients with diverticular disease of the colon and in vegetarians. Scand J Gastroenterol. 1978;13(5):573–576. doi: 10.3109/00365527809181766. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Rees W. D., Rhodes J. Altered bowel habit and menstruation. Lancet. 1976 Aug 28;2(7983):475–475. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(76)92575-7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Slavin J. L., Sempos C. T., Brauer P. M., Marlett J. A. Limits of predicting gastrointestinal transit time from other measures of bowel function. Am J Clin Nutr. 1981 Oct;34(10):2111–2116. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/34.10.2111. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Wald A., Van Thiel D. H., Hoechstetter L., Gavaler J. S., Egler K. M., Verm R., Scott L., Lester R. Gastrointestinal transit: the effect of the menstrual cycle. Gastroenterology. 1981 Jun;80(6):1497–1500. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Wyman J. B., Heaton K. W., Manning A. P., Wicks A. C. Variability of colonic function in healthy subjects. Gut. 1978 Feb;19(2):146–150. doi: 10.1136/gut.19.2.146. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Gut are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES