Dietary properties and anthropometric findings of children with functional constipation: a cross-sectional study

Functional constipation (FC) is a common problem in childhood. This study intended to investigate the dietary properties and anthropometric findings of children with FC.

Patients with FC were defined according to the Rome IV diagnostic criteria. The control group included children who were not diagnosed with FC or any other organic disease. The children who admitted to pediatric gastroenterology outpatient clinic between September 2017-March 2018 were included. Anthropometric measurements of weight, height, and body mass index were recorded. Body mass index z-scores were used to identify for overweight and obese children. Malnutrition was defined according to Waterlow criteria. The three-day nutritional diaries of both FC patients and control subjects were assessed and the daily average of calorie, fiber, carbohydrate, protein and fat intake were calculated by the same nutritionist.

Fourty patients with FC and fourty healthy control were included. Twenty-four patients with FC were in the normal height and weight ranges. There was no significant difference in the average daily calorie, carbohydrate, fat and fiber intake between the FC and control groups. Although protein ratios (%) in the diet were found to be significantly lower in children with FC, the amount of protein that taken daily was found to be within normal limits in both groups.

Most children with FC were in the normal range for height and weight. There was no significant relationship between FC and carbohydrate, fat and fiber content in the diet, only low protein ratios were found in FC.