Dietary and Physical Activity Factors Concerning Bowel Movement Frequency among Undergraduate Students during Covid-19 Pandemic

Nazrul Hadi Ismail; Mohamad Shahdan Hanafi; Dittasari Putriana

doi:10.21834/ebpj.v7i21.3696

Authors

Nazrul Hadi Ismail Centre for Dietetics Studies, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia,
Mohamad Shahdan Hanafi Centre for Dietetics Studies, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia
Dittasari Putriana Nutrition Study Program, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universitas â€˜Aisyiyah Yogyakarta, Indonesia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.21834/ebpj.v7i21.3696

Keywords:

Bowel Movement, Dietary Intake, Physical Activity, COVID-19

Abstract

This study explored the association between lifestyle and bowel movement frequency among students. A cross-sectional study was employed using a structured questionnaire that was administrated via an online platform. A total of 363 participants were involved in this study, where 77.4% (n=281) were female while 72.2% (n=262) of them did not experience constipation. Further investigation found that calories, dietary fibre, drink consumption, and physical activity level were associated with bowel movement frequency. This study showed that a good nutrient intake and adequate physical activity would improve bowel movement frequency even though restricted movement due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

References

Abd Rahman, N. (2020). Dietary patterns of Malaysians during the Movement Control Order (MCO) during the COVID-19 pandemic. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 10(10). https://doi.org/10.6007/ijarbss/v10-i10/7654

Cancello, R., Soranna, D., Zambra, G., Zambon, A., & Invitti, C. (2020). Determinants of the lifestyle changes during COVID-19 pandemic in the residents of Northern Italy. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(17), 6287. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17176287

Chang, J. Y., Locke, R. G., McNally, M. A., Halder, S. L., Schleck, C. D., Zinsmeister, A. R., & Talley, N. J. (2010). Impact of functional gastrointestinal disorders on survival in the community. American Journal of Gastroenterology, 105(4), 822–832. https://doi.org/10.1038/ajg.2010.40

Di Renzo, L., Gualtieri, P., Pivari, F., Soldati, L., Attinà, A., Cinelli, G., Leggeri, C., Caparello, G., Barrea, L., Scerbo, F., Esposito, E., & De Lorenzo, A. (2020). Eating habits and lifestyle changes during COVID-19 lockdown: An Italian survey. Journal of Translational Medicine, 18(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12967-020-02399-5

Dong, Y.-Y., Chen, F.-X., Yu, Y.-B., Du, C., Qi, Q.-Q., Liu, H., & Li, Y.-Q. (2013). A school-based study with Rome III criteria on the prevalence of functional gastrointestinal disorders in Chinese College and university students. PLoS ONE, 8(1). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0054183

Fang X, Lu S, Pan G. (2001) An epidemiologic study of bowel habit in adult non-patient population in Beijing area. Zhonghua Yi Xue Za Zhi. 10;81(21):1287-90. Chinese. PMID: 16200717.

Forootan, M., Bagheri, N., & Darvishi, M. (2018). Chronic constipation. Medicine, 97(20). https://doi.org/10.1097/md.0000000000010631

Heaton, K. W., Radvan, J., Cripps, H., Mountford, R. A., Braddon, F. E., & Hughes, A. O. (1992). Defecation frequency and timing, and stool form in the general population: A prospective study. Gut, 33(6), 818–824. https://doi.org/10.1136/gut.33.6.818

Ilyas J, Shahid S, Jafri A, Saeed M, Rizwan A, Khan U, & Zahir SM (2021). Functional constipation and its association with lifestyle habits of medical students using Rome IV Diagnostic Criteria. Middle East Journal of Family Medicine. 7(10):62.

Johanson, J. F., & Kralstein, J. (2007). Chronic constipation: A survey of the patient perspective. Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics, 25(5), 599–608. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2036.2006.03238.x

Lee, P. H., Macfarlane, D. J., Lam, T. H., & Stewart, S. M. (2011). Validity of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Form (IPAQ-SF): A systematic review. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 8(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/1479-5868-8-115

Lim, Y. J., Rosita, J., Chieng, J. Y., & Hazizi, A. S. (2016). The prevalence and symptoms characteristic of functional constipation using Rome III diagnostic criteria among Tertiary Education Students. PLoS ONE, 11(12). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0167243

Lippi, G., & Plebani, M. (2020). The novel coronavirus (2019-ncov) outbreak: Think the unthinkable and be prepared to face the Challenge. Diagnosis, 7(2), 79–81. https://doi.org/10.1515/dx-2020-0015

Malone, J., & Thavamani, A. (2020). Physiology, Gastrocolic Reflex.

Mazlyn MM, Nagarajah LH, Fatimah A, Norimah AK, Goh KL. (2013) Stool patterns of Malaysian adults with functional constipation: association with diet and physical activity. Malays J Nutr. 19(1):53-64.

Mugie, S. M., Benninga, M. A., & Di Lorenzo, C. (2011). Epidemiology of constipation in children and adults: A systematic review. Best Practice & Research Clinical Gastroenterology, 25(1), 3–18. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpg.2010.12.010

Pare, P., Ferrazzi, S., Thompson, W. G., Irvine, E. J., & Rance, L. (2001). An epidemiological survey of constipation in Canada: Definitions, rates, demographics, and predictors of health care seeking. The American Journal of Gastroenterology, 96(11), 3130–3137. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1572-0241.2001.05259.x

Patimah, A. W., Lee, Y. Y., & Dariah, M. Y. (2017). Frequency patterns of core constipation symptoms among the Asian adults: A systematic review. BMC Gastroenterology, 17(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12876-017-0672-z

Rao, S., & Go. (2010). Update on the management of constipation in the elderly: New treatment options. Clinical Interventions in Aging, 163. https://doi.org/10.2147/cia.s8100

Sanjoaquin, M. A., Appleby, P. N., Spencer, E. A., & Key, T. J. (2004). Nutrition and lifestyle in relation to bowel movement frequency: A cross-sectional study of 20 630 men and women in epic–oxford. Public Health Nutrition, 7(1), 77–83. https://doi.org/10.1079/phn2003522

Schuster BG, Kosar L, Kamrul R. (2015) Constipation in older adults: stepwise approach to keep things moving. Can Fam Physician. 61(2):152-8. PMID: 25676646; PMCID: PMC4325863.

Verkuijl, S. J., Meinds, R. J., Trzpis, M., & Broens, P. M. (2020). The influence of demographic characteristics on constipation symptoms: A detailed overview. BMC Gastroenterology, 20(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12876-020-01306-y

Wai Ng, T. K. (2016). Dietary fibre and total fluid intakes are inversely associated with risk of constipation in Malaysian adolescents, adults and the elderly. International e-Journal of Science, Medicine & Education, 10(1), 17–23. https://doi.org/10.56026/imu.10.1.17

Watanabe, T., Nakaya, N., Kurashima, K., Kuriyama, S., Tsubono, Y., & Tsuji, I. (2004). Constipation, laxative use and risk of colorectal cancer: The miyagi cohort study. European Journal of Cancer, 40(14), 2109–2115. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejca.2004.06.014

WHO Director-General’s Opening Remarks at the Media Briefing on COVID-19 (2020). Available online: https://www.who.int/dg/speeches/detail/who-director-general-s-opening-remarks-at-themedia-briefing-on-covid-19-11-march-2020.

World Gastroenterology Organisation Global Guidelines constipation—a global perspective. (2012). Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology, 46(1), 90. https://doi.org/10.1097/mcg.0b013e3182419db9

Yusop, N. B., & Yasin, N. Q. (2021). Association between dietary intake, physical activity and stress level with constipation among undergraduate students. Malaysian Journal of Nutrition, 27(2). https://doi.org/10.31246/mjn-2019-0099

Zhu, N., Zhang, D., Wang, W., Li, X., Yang, B., Song, J., Zhao, X., Huang, B., Shi, W., Lu, R., Niu, P., Zhan, F., Ma, X., Wang, D., Xu, W., Wu, G., Gao, G. F., & Tan, W. (2020). A novel coronavirus from patients with pneumonia in China, 2019. New England Journal of Medicine, 382(8), 727–733. https://doi.org/10.1056/nejmoa2001017