2003 Volume 7 Issue 2 Pages 97-102
Effects of ingestion of drinks containing galactosylsucrose(LS) 5g on defecation were studied in 40 senile patients with constipation tendencies (11 men and 29 women, average age 80.2±9.b years). The duration of the experiment was four weeks divided into four periods: non-ingestion period 1(pre-ingestion period: 1st week), ingestion period 1(2nd week), ingestion period 2(3rd week), and non-ingestion period 2(post-ingestion period: 4th week). The resulting defecation frequency in patients who defecated less than 4 days a week was significantly increased (p<0.05) due to the LS drink ingestion. This increase was observed during both the ingestion period 2 and the post-ingestion period compared with during the pre-ingestion period. The fecal volume significantly increased (p<0.05) during the ingestion period 1 compared with during the pre-ingestion period. These results indicate that ingestion of 5g LS/day can improve defecation of senile patients with constipation tendencies.
