Dietary fiber in hospitalized geriatric patients: too soft a solution for too hard a problem?

Increased fiber in the diet has been shown in the past to improve bowel function in elderly outpatients and in long-term care institutions. A randomized placebo-controlled, double-blind study was conducted in a geriatric ward of an acute-care hospital to see if a palatable form of fiber would decrease the incidence of constipation and use of laxatives. In this patient sample, no beneficial effect of fiber supplementation could be found when used up to three weeks.