Dietary practices, beliefs and behaviours of adults with inflammatory bowel disease: a cross-sectional study

Background It is widely accepted that there is an association between diet and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Diet may play a role in disease pathogenesis but also in treatment and management of IBD. There is an increased interest in dietary aspects of people with IBD. Aims To investigate dietary...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Irish journal of medical science 2023-06, Vol.192 (3), p.1115-1124
Main Authors: Murtagh, Aoife, Cooney, Lorraine, Higginbotham, Clement, Heavey, Patricia
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Colitis, Ulcerative
Crohn Disease
Cross-Sectional Studies
Diet
Family Medicine
Female
General Practice
Humans
Inflammatory Bowel Diseases
Internal Medicine
Male
Medicine
Medicine & Public Health
Original Article
Recurrence
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Summary:Background It is widely accepted that there is an association between diet and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Diet may play a role in disease pathogenesis but also in treatment and management of IBD. There is an increased interest in dietary aspects of people with IBD. Aims To investigate dietary practices, beliefs and behaviours of adults with IBD in Ireland. Methods An online questionnaire was adapted to explore dietary practices, beliefs and behaviours of people with IBD, and to identify any dietary modifications made due to their IBD. Results A total of 475 participants (female n  = 354, male n  = 121) took part in this study, 62% had Crohn’s disease and 38% had ulcerative colitis. Dietary restrictions were imposed in the hope of preventing a relapse by 85% of participants. The most reported foods avoided included fatty foods (68%), spicy foods (64%) and raw vegetables or fruit (58%). Low fibre white plain foods (74%) appeared to improve symptoms during a relapse. Participant’s appetites were higher during remission (8.36, SD =  ± 1.95), compared to during relapse (3.71, SD =  ± 2.32) ( P  ≤ 0.001). Almost three-quarters (73%) avoided the same menu as others living in their household and 56% avoided eating out to prevent or for fear of causing a relapse. Additionally, 70% avoided food or drink they liked to try prevent a relapse. Conclusion These findings provide important insights into the dietary practices, beliefs and behaviours of adults with IBD. Its evident diet plays an important role, and our findings reiterate the importance of patient education and support.
ISSN:0021-1265
1863-4362
DOI:10.1007/s11845-022-03097-5