TITLE:
Soluble Fiber Improves Management of Diarrhea in Elderly Patients Receiving Enteral Nutrition
AUTHORS:
Yoshiaki Kato, Makoto Nakao, Motoh Iwasa, Shizuo Hasegawa, Kiyofumi Yamada
KEYWORDS:
Enteral Nutrition; Soluble Dietary Fiber; Diarrhea; Plasma Short-Chain Fatty Acids; Plasma Diamine Oxidase; Elderly Patients
JOURNAL NAME:
Food and Nutrition Sciences,
Vol.3 No.11,
November
20,
2012
ABSTRACT: Dietary fiber is a non-digestible
carbohydrate providing beneficial effects for bowel health. The aim of this
study was to evaluate the clinical effects of fiber supplementation in enteral
feeding on elderly patients suffering from diarrhea. This study was conducted
in 15 patients (7 men and 8 women, 79.0
± 7.5 years) who had loose stools
or diarrhea during enteral nutrition. The enteral formula was supplemented with soluble
dietary fiber (5.2 g/day)
for 3 weeks, which was then discontinued for 1 week to confirm its effects. The
effects of soluble dietary fiber on stool frequency, the Bristol Stool Form
Scale (which is designed to measure stool consistency), plasma diamine oxidase
(DAO) activity, and concentrations of plasma short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) were evaluated. After supplementation with soluble
dietary fiber, there were no significant differences in stool frequency but there was a significant improvement in stool
consistency (P creased levels of plasma SCFA (P