TOPLINE:

Adults with higher relative fat mass had an increased likelihood of having chronic diarrhea. However, this measure alone had only a modest ability to discriminate individuals with the condition.

METHODOLOGY:

• Evidence linking obesity and diarrhea is growing, and relative fat mass is being increasingly recognized as a better marker of visceral fat than BMI. Researchers examined whether relative fat mass was associated with the prevalence of chronic diarrhea.
• They conducted a cross-sectional study using 2005-2010 data from a nationally representative US-based survey and included adults aged 20 years or older, excluding pregnant individuals.
• Relative fat mass was calculated using a formula involving height and waist circumference. Adults were categorized into four quartiles ranging from lowest to highest relative fat mass.
• Adults reported the texture and consistency of their usual stool using the Bristol Stool Form Scale, with types 6-7 classified as chronic diarrhea.

TAKEAWAY:

• The final analysis included 11,218 adults (51.6% female); 854 had chronic diarrhea.
• Each 1-unit increase in relative fat mass was associated with a 7% increased odds of chronic diarrhea (P < .001) in a fully adjusted analysis.
• Adults in the highest quartile of relative fat mass had 2.39-fold higher odds of chronic diarrhea than those in the lowest quartile (P = .012), with odds rising with increasing quartile (P for trend = .023). The link was stronger among adults with higher BMI or higher physical activity levels.
• Relative fat mass showed a modest predictive ability for chronic diarrhea with a receiver operating characteristic area under the curve value of 0.59.

IN PRACTICE:

“By focusing on visceral adiposity rather than generalized obesity, this study provides new insights into the heterogeneity of obesity-related gastrointestinal dysfunction,” the authors of the study wrote.

SOURCE:

The study was jointly led by Kunlong Yang, Guangxi University of Chinese Medicine, and Qiao Chen, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi University of Chinese Medicine, Guangxi, China. It was published online in Digestive Diseases and Sciences.

LIMITATIONS:

The study was cross-sectional, so it could not establish that high relative fat mass caused chronic diarrhea. Unmeasured factors may have affected the results, and survey data may not reflect all populations. Relative fat mass also had only modest predictive value and could not be used alone to diagnose risk.

DISCLOSURES:

The study received financial support from one of the authors. The authors declared having no competing interests.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.