Lifestyle and bowel movements in school children: Results from the Toyama Birth Cohort Study

Background: Constipation is a prevalent health disorder. There have been few epidemiological surveys on constipation in Japanese children. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of non-daily bowel movements (BM) and irregular BM among children and to identify modifiable lifestyle factors relevant to bowel habits. Methods: Subjects were from the Toyama Birth Cohort Study in Japan. A total of 7762 children aged 9–10 years were investigated via questionnaire in 1999. We evaluated bowel habit and the relationship between lifestyle and BM. Non-daily BM and totally irregular BM were defined as dependent variables in the present study. Results: Non-daily BM were reported by 21.8% of boys and by 31.6% of girls, while 10.6% of boys and 18.3% of girls had totally irregular BM. Non-daily BM were significantly associated with skipping breakfast (OR, 1.23), slow eating (OR, 1.13), physical inactivity (OR, 1.50) and late wake up (OR, 1.29). Totally irregular BM were significantly correlated with skipping breakfast (OR, 1.30), slow eating (OR, 1.41), physical inactivity (OR, 1.27), long TV viewing (OR, 1.52), late bedtime (OR, 1.43), and short sleep duration (OR, 1.33). More girls had non-daily and totally irregular BM than boys, and these sex differences were not reduced after adjusting for lifestyle variables. Conclusions: Non-daily and totally irregular BM are common in children, and there are many relevant lifestyle factors. Establishing regular lifestyle habits may lessen constipation.