J Neurogastroenterol Motil.  2021 Jan;27(1):78-86. 10.5056/jnm20007.

Adherence to Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension Eating Plan and Prevalence of Irritable Bowel Syndrome in Adults

• Soltani S
• Keshteli AH
• Esmaillzadeh A
• Adibi P

• KMID: 2510065
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.5056/jnm20007

Abstract

Background/Aims
Despite huge evidence on the link between adherence to dietary approaches to stop hypertension (DASH) eating pattern and several metabolic abnormalities, the association of this diet with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) has not been investigated so far. We aim to examine the association between adherence to the DASH diet and prevalence of IBS symptoms and subtypes in adults.
Methods
This cross-sectional study was done among 3362 adult people in Isfahan, Iran. Usual dietary intakes were assessed using a validated 106-item dish-based semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire. To investigate participants’ adherence to DASH-style diet, we created DASH score based on 8 main foods and nutrients emphasized or minimized in the DASH diet. Participants were classified into 3 categories according to their DASH-style diet scores. A validated modified Persian version of the Rome III questionnaire was applied for assessment of IBS.
Results
Totally, 22.2% of study participants were affected by IBS. After adjustment for potential confounding factors, we found that participants in the highest tertile of DASH score had lower odds of IBS (OR, 0.65; 95% CI, 0.50-0.83) compared with those in the lowest tertile. The same findings were also reached for IBS with constipation (OR for the highest vs the lowest tertile of DASH-style diet = 0.56; 95% CI, 0.38-0.85). No significant association was seen between adherence to DASH-style diet and IBS with diarrhea (OR, 1.31; 95% CI, 0.83-2.06).
Conclusions
We found a significant inverse association between adherence to DASH dietary pattern and odds of IBS and IBS with constipation. Further prospective studies are required to confirm these findings.

Keyword

Adult; Dietary approaches to stop hypertension; Iran; Irritable bowel syndrome