title: Relationship between spicy food intake and chronic uninvestigated dyspepsia in Iranian adults.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the association between spicy food consumption and chronic uninvestigated dyspepsia (CUD) in a large sample of Iranian adults.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this cross-sectional study we assessed the consumption of spicy foods in 4763 Iranian adults living in Isfahan Province using a dietary habit questionnaire. A modified validated version of the Rome III questionnaire was used to assess CUD-related symptoms. CUD was defined as having one or more of the following characteristics: distressing postprandial fullness, early satiation and/or epigastric pain or epigastric burning at least often during the past three months. Information on meal regularity, meal frequency, intra-meal intake of fluid as well as other potential confounders was also collected.
  
  
  RESULTS
  CUD was prevalent in 15% of the participants. The frequent consumption of spicy foods (≥ 10 times/week) was associated with greater odds of having CUD [odds ratio (OR) 1.64, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.09-2.49, P < 0.05). This relationship was significant even after adjusted for diet-related practices (OR 1.68, 95% CI 1.01-2.79, P < 0.05). There was a significantly positive association between spicy food consumption and postprandial fullness (OR 1.76, 95% CI 1.29-2.40, P < 0.05) and epigastric pain (OR 1.78, 95% CI 1.30-2.44, P < 0.05). However, no significant relationship was observed between the frequent consumption of spicy foods and early satiation.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  High consumption of spicy foods is associated with greater odds of CUD, frequent postprandial fullness and epigastric pain. Further studies, particularly of a prospective nature, are needed to confirm our findings.
authors.affiliation: Food Security Research Center.|Students' Research Committee.|Department of Community Nutrition, School of Nutrition and Food Science.
authors.forename: Parvane
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Saneei
authors.affiliation: Food Security Research Center.|Students' Research Committee.|Department of Community Nutrition, School of Nutrition and Food Science.
authors.forename: Omid
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Sadeghi
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health.
authors.forename: Awat
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Feizi
authors.affiliation: Integrative Functional Gastroenterology Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan.|Department of Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
authors.forename: Ammar Hassanzadeh
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Keshteli
authors.affiliation: Integrative Functional Gastroenterology Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan.
authors.forename: Hamed
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Daghaghzadeh
authors.affiliation: Food Security Research Center.|Department of Community Nutrition, School of Nutrition and Food Science.|Department of Community Nutrition, School of Nutritional Sciences and Dietetics, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Ahmad
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Esmaillzadeh
authors.affiliation: Integrative Functional Gastroenterology Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan.
authors.forename: Peyman
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Adibi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004415:Dyspepsia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007492:Iran / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019518:Postprandial Period; D012307:Risk Factors; D012527:Satiation / Q000502:physiology; D017365:Spices / Q000009:adverse effects*
keywords: dyspepsia; early satiation; epigastric pain; food habits; postprandial fullness; spices