Beverage Consumption and Ulcerative Colitis: A Case-Control Study from Saudi Arabia.

Mohamed Ma Mhimed,Sin How Lim,Weiam Al-Hunaishi,Anas Almofarreh,Osama Alzeer,Haytham A. Sheerah,Ahmed Arafa,Shaik Shaffi Ahamed,Ali Al-Hazmi

doi:10.3390/ijerph19042287

Abstract

Background: The association between beverage intake and ulcerative colitis (UC) is not well-established, with no available data from Arab countries. Herein, we investigated the potential association of consuming coffee, tea, and carbonated soft drinks with UC among a population from Saudi Arabia. Methods: This hospital-based case-control study used data of 171 newly diagnosed UC patients and 400 patients with other gastrointestinal conditions who served as controls. All UC cases were ascertained by endoscopy, while beverage intake was assessed by a questionnaire that was completed before diagnosis. We computed odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) of UC and UC extension for frequent versus infrequent intakes of coffee, tea, and carbonated soft drinks using logistic regression. Results: Overall, 23.4% of UC patients had pancolitis, 21.1% extensive, 51.4% left-sided, and 4.1% proctitis. UC patients had a similar sex distribution to the controls but were older and had a lower BMI. After adjustment for age, sex, body mass index, and smoking history, frequent intakes of coffee and tea were associated with lower odds of UC: 0.62 (0.42, 0.91) and 0.53 (0.35, 0.79), respectively. On the other hand, frequent intakes of carbonated soft drinks were associated with increased odds of UC: 9.82 (6.12, 15.76). The frequency of beverage consumption was not associated with UC extension. Conclusion: UC was negatively associated with frequent coffee and tea consumption but positively associated with frequent carbonated soft drink intake in Saudi people. More population-based prospective cohort studies are needed to confirm our findings.

Highlights

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic inflammatory disease starting in the rectum and extending to proximal segments of the colon [1,2]
The odds ratios (ORs) with their 95% confidence intervals of ulcerative colitis (UC) versus controls for frequent versus infrequent intakes of coffee, tea, and carbonated soft drinks were calculated separately by logistic regression
Patients with UC were older than their controls (40.0 ± 12.5 versus 37.7 ± 8.8 years, p-value = 0.014), with a lower body mass index (BMI) (25.3 ± 5.8 versus 27.4 ± 9.3 kg/m2 ; p-value = 0.007) and proportion of ever-smoking history (10.5% versus 20.5%; p-value = 0.004)

Summary

Introduction

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic inflammatory disease starting in the rectum and extending to proximal segments of the colon [1,2]. The real etiology of UC is still unknown; several genetic, environmental, and nutritional risk factors have been indicated, such as family history of UC, smoking, and some medications, including hormone replacement therapy, oral contraceptives, and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs [1]. Among these factors, a growing body of evidence, inconclusive, has suggested that beverage consumption, namely coffee, tea, and soft drinks, could be related to UC risk [6]. Results: Overall, 23.4% of UC patients had pancolitis, 21.1%

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Conclusion