Abstract:

Objective: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is one of the most common chronic functional diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. There is no organic disorder in IBS. The pathogenesis of IBS is not fully understood. Although the symptoms of IBS patients are mostly diet-related, there are not many studies evaluating nutrient intake. In this study, it was aimed to determine nutrient intake and nutrition habits of IBS patients. Methods: A total of 70 IBS patients, 52 females and 18 males, were included in the study. Three-day food records were compiled. Besides, foods that reduced symptoms of IBS and foods that caused sitophobia were interrogated in the study. Results: The mean age of the patients was 37.8±10.03 years and 40% of them were IBS-mixed subtype. Daily intake of energy and some nutrients were found to be similar to the recommended levels. The mean intake of energy, protein, carbohydrate, saturated fatty acid, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, copper (p<0.001), total folic acid, carotene, sodium, and potassium (p<0.05) showed statistically significant differences according to gender. It was determined that 85.7% of the patients had sitophobia. In both genders, apricot was the most reported food to have reduced IBS symptoms. The foods causing sitophobia were raw vegetables-fruits (35.7%), spicy foods (34.3%), and legumes (27.1%). Conclusions: Although IBS avoids consuming certain foods for fear of increasing their symptoms, energy, and nutrient intake is found to be similar to generally recommended levels.

Keywords: