title: Constipation in Taiwan elementary school students: a nationwide survey.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  To evaluate the prevalence and associated factors of childhood constipation in Taiwan.
  
  
  METHODS
  Healthy children between 7 and 12 years of age were interviewed to determine the prevalence of constipation and associated demographic and dietary factors. A nationwide sample of 2,375 children was selected with complex multistaged sampling throughout Taiwan.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In total, 2,375 individuals (1,282 boys and 1,093 girls, mean age=9.3±2.2 years) were interviewed, with a response rate of 95.1%. The prevalence of constipation was 32.2%, and girls were more likely to have constipation than boys (36.1% vs. 29.2%, p=0.0012) in this study. The prevalence of constipation was inversely related to age (24.4% for children aged 11 and 12, 34.0% for children aged 9 and 10, and 39.6% for children aged 7 and 8, p<0.001). Constipated children were more likely to report irregular bowl movements (37.2% vs. 29.3%, p=0.003), and constipated children had a significantly lower body mass index (17.5kg/m(2)vs. 18.3kg/m(2), p<0.001). The dietary intake for children with constipation was associated with lower intake of vegetables (4.2 servings/week vs. 5.8 servings/week, p<0.05), fruits (5.6 servings/week vs. 7.0 servings/week, p<0.05), soybean products (2.2 servings/week vs. 2.9 serving/week, p<0.05), and eggs (3.9 servings/week vs. 4.6 servings/week, p<0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Constipation is common in Taiwanese school-aged children, especially in girls. Less frequent consumption of vegetables, fruits, soybean products, and eggs is associated with childhood constipation. Establishing a regular bowel habit is encouraged to decrease the risk of constipation, and allowing the children a relaxed and sufficient time to defecate after school is essential.
authors.affiliation: Children's Medical Center, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC. tcwu@vghtpe.gov.tw
authors.forename: Tzee-Chung
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Liang-Kung
authors.initials: LK
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Wen-Han
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Pan
authors.forename: Ren-Bin
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.forename: Shinn-Jang
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Hwang
authors.forename: Lite
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Frank
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Eugene James
authors.forename: Po-Hon
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D003248:Constipation / Q000453:epidemiology*; D004032:Diet; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D013624:Taiwan / Q000453:epidemiology