Risk factors and bowel movement characteristics during the lockdown among ‘new-onset constipation’ and subjects without constipation
| ‘New-onset’ constipation n=170 | No constipation n=508 | P | OR (95% CI) | |
| Regular fibre intake (n, %) | 115 (67%) | 356 (70%) | 0.55 | 0.8 (0.6 to 1.2) |
| Type of fibre | ||||
| High-fibre cereals (n, %) | 32 (19%) | 101 (20%) | 0.09 | 0.3 (0.2 to 0.4) |
| Fruits and vegetables (n, %) | 74 (43%) | 247 (48%) | 0.2 (0.2 to 0.3) | |
| Supplement in capsules (n, %) | 1 (.6%) | 0 | — | |
| Supplement in powder (n, %) | 8 (5%) | 8 (2%) | 1.0 (0.3 to 2.7) | |
| Water intake (n, %) | ||||
| <500 mL per day (n, %) | 2 (1%) | 5 (1%) | 0.001† | 2.5 (0.4 to 12.8) |
| 500 mL to 1 L per day (n, %) | 49 (29%) | 87 (17%) | 1.7 (1.2 to 2.5) | |
| 1 to 2.5 L per day (n, %) | 101 (59%) | 333 (66%) | 3.2 (2.6 to 4.1) | |
| >2.5 L per day (n, %) | 18 (11%) | 83 (16%) | 4.6 (2.7 to 7.6) | |
| Stop physical activity during the lockdown | ||||
| Yes (n, %) | 79 (47%) | 187 (37%) | 0.03† | 1.49 (1.0 to 2.1) |
| Intensity of physical activity | ||||
| Zero (n, %) | 79 (47%) | 187 (37%) | 0.011† | 2.3 (1.8 to 3) |
| Mild (n, %) | 10 (6%) | 63 (12%) | 6 (3.2 to 12) | |
| Moderate (n, %) | 68 (40%) | 193 (38%) | 2.8 (2.1 to 3.7) | |
| Intense (n, %) | 13 (8%) | 65 (13%) | 5 (2.7 to 9) | |
| Duration of physical activity | ||||
| <30 min per day (n, %) | 34 (20%) | 91 (18%) | 0.703 | 2.6 (1.8 to 3.9) |
| 30 to 60 min per day (n, %) | 51 (30%) | 172 (34%) | 3.3 (2.4 to 4.6) | |
| 61 to 90 min per day (n, %) | 13 (8%) | 47 (9%) | 3.6 (1.9 to 6.6) | |
| 91 to 120 min per day (n, %) | 2 (1%) | 9 (2%) | 4.5 (0.9 to 20) | |
| More than 120 min per day (n, %) | 1 (0.6%) | 7 (1.4%) | 7 (0.8 to 56) | |
| Days of physical activity per week (mean, SD) | 2.46±2.3 | 2.7±2.3 | 0.185 | — |
| Bowel movement characteristics | ||||
| Bowel movements per day (mean, SD) | 1.5±0.8* | 2.06±1.2 | 0.001 | — |
| Bowel movements per week (mean, SD) | 8.01±5.2* | 12.1±6.8 | 0.001 | — |
| Consistency according to the Bristol Scale | 2.9±1.4* | 3.9±0.89 | 0.001 | ----- |
Bold values signify that they have a p value <0.05.
*Student’s t test.
†χ2 test.