[Dietary fiber intake in women with constipation].

The objective of this study was to investigate the food pattern of women with constipation. It was carried out a 24 h recall and a food frequency survey in 31 constipated women and compared the results with a control of 31 women without constipation. Their mean daily crude fiber intake were no statistical different (2.33 +/- 1.4 vs 2.17 +/- 0.9 g/day), but the usual intake of fruits and vegetables of the constipated ones were irregular. These results call the attention for the influence of the kind and schedule of the food rich fiber intake on the intestinal habit.