Table 3.
Changes in nutrient intake and defecation pattern following the intervention.
| TM Group (n = 12) | AE Group (n = 17) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baseline | Post | Baseline | Post | ||
| Nutrient intake | |||||
| Total energy | (kcal/day) | 1863 (1827–1908) | 1878 (1839–1942) | 1874 (1795–1956) | 1828 (1796–1942) |
| Carbohydrates | (g/day) | 244.8 (237.6–252.7) | 248.0 (243.0–255.3) | 246.7 (240.8–258.1) | 243.4 (238.9–255.2) |
| Protein | (g/day) | 76.5 (74.2–83.1) | 76.8 (74.4–84.2) | 75.6 (71.6–82.9) | 75.3 (71.8–82.1) |
| Lipid | (g/day) | 59.2 (57.8–60.5) | 59.9 (59.1–64.5) | 58.9 (56.2–64.0) | 58.5 (55.8–63.9) |
| Saturated fat | (g/day) | 17.1 (16.7–17.7) | 17.7 (16.7–20.0) | 17.7 (16.1–19.1) | 16.9 (16.0–19.1) |
| Fiber | (g/day) | 17.6 (17.1–17.9) | 18.2 (17.3–18.8) | 17.6 (17.2–18.5) | 17.7 (17.0–18.2) |
| Defecation pattern | |||||
| CAS-J | (/16) | 3.50 (2.25–5.75) | 3.50 (2.00–5.75) | 2.00 (1.00–4.50) | 2.00 (0.00–3.00) * |
| Abdomen appears distended or swollen | (/2) | 0.0 (0.0–1.0) | 0.0 (0.0–1.0) | 0.0 (0.0–1.0) | 0.0 (0.0–0.0) |
| Amount of flatus | (/2) | 1.0 (0.0–1.0) | 1.0 (0.0–2.0) | 0.0 (0.0–1.0) | 0.0 (0.0–1.0) |
| Frequency of defecation | (/2) | 0.0 (0.0–1.0) | 0.0 (0.0–1.0) | 0.0 (0.0–1.0) | 0.0 (0.0–0.5) |
| Rectum appears to be filled with feces | (/2) | 1.0 (0.0–1.0) | 0.0 (0.0–0.8) * | 0.0 (0.0–1.0) | 0.0 (0.0–0.0) |
| Pain of the anus during defecation | (/2) | 0.0 (0.0–1.0) | 0.0 (0.0–0.8) | 0.0 (0.0–0.5) | 0.0 (0.0–0.0) |
| Amount of feces | (/2) | 0.0 (0.0–0.8) | 0.0 (0.0–1.0) | 0.0 (0.0–0.0) | 0.0 (0.0–0.0) |
| Ease of defecation | (/2) | 0.5 (0.0–1.0) | 0.0 (0.0–1.0) | 0.0 (0.0–1.0) | 0.0 (0.0–1.0) * |
| Diarrhea or watery stools | (/2) | 0.0 (0.0–1.0) | 0.0 (0.0–0.0) | 0.0 (0.0–1.0) | 0.0 (0.0–0.0) |
All values are presented as median (interquartile range). Changes in clinical parameters following intervention in each group were examined by the Wilcoxon Signed-rank test. *: p < 0.05 compared with baseline. Abbreviations: TM, trunk muscle training; AE, aerobic exercise training; CAS-J, Japanese version of the Constipation Assessment Scale.