Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the dietary habits and the factors related to lifestyles in female college students with constipation. A survey was conducted using a self-administered questionnaires. Two hundred ninety one subjects participated in this study. All respondents were divided into three groups based on their frequency of stool evacuation: 129 subjects (44.3%) comprised the normal group, 109 (37.5%) the mild constipated group and 53 (18.2%) the severely constipated group. Abdominal pain and ailment during evacuation were higher and the feeling of relief after evacuation was lower in the normal group than in the two constipated groups. The greater the symptoms of constipation, the more laxatives were taken. The prevalence of constipation was lower in students who lived at home than in those who lived in other types of residences. The more pocket money the subject had, the more complaints they had about constipation symptoms. Forty three percent of the subjects ate meals regularly. The less frequently they ate meals and the greater the rate of skipping breakfasts and dining-out, the greater were their constipation symptoms. Rice and most of the food items in the vegetable food group were consumed less frequently in the two constipated groups than in the normal group. The severely constipated group ate food items in the fat group less frequently than the normal and mildly costipated groups. The beverage intake of the normal group tended to be lower than those of the two constipated groups; the constipated groups consumed fruits and vegetable juices less frequently and coffee and tea more frequently. The severely constipated group ate the least number of food items in the vegetable & fruit and fat food groups. Therefore, dietary habits and factors related to lifestyles should be changed through nutrition education programs aimed at improving the symptoms of constipation in young women.

• Keywords: female college student; constipation; lifestyle; dietary habit