psyllium
Place in Therapy
Place in Therapy
Metamucil has no evidence for the treatment of traveller’s diarrhea, diarrhea, or irritable bowel syndrome that could be caused by traveller’s diarrhea. The results are based on various reviews of meta analysis, RCT’s, and systematic reviews (1,2, 3, 4). Studies looked at the effect of Metamucil in traveller’s diarrhea and the results were inconclusive (5). Metamucil induced therapy of Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli were tested in piglets. Metamucil had some favourable benefits at alleviating the symptoms of the infection (6). However, the study cannot be extrapolated to humans and the favourable effects only lasted one day. Therefore, Metamucil seems to have theoretical benefits at increasing consistency of diarrheal bowel movements, but no clear evidence exists for its use. Therefore, the product could be recommended because it is relatively safe, but no efficacy benefits should be expected.
References:
Metamucil has no evidence for the treatment of traveller’s diarrhea, diarrhea, or irritable bowel syndrome that could be caused by traveller’s diarrhea. The results are based on various reviews of meta analysis, RCT’s, and systematic reviews (1,2, 3, 4). Studies looked at the effect of Metamucil in traveller’s diarrhea and the results were inconclusive (5). Metamucil induced therapy of Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli were tested in piglets. Metamucil had some favourable benefits at alleviating the symptoms of the infection (6). However, the study cannot be extrapolated to humans and the favourable effects only lasted one day. Therefore, Metamucil seems to have theoretical benefits at increasing consistency of diarrheal bowel movements, but no clear evidence exists for its use. Therefore, the product could be recommended because it is relatively safe, but no efficacy benefits should be expected.
References:
- Longstreth GF, Fox DD, Youkeles L, et al. Psyllium Therapy in the Irritable Bowel Syndrome- a double blind study. Annals of Internal Medicine 1981; 95:53-56
- PSYLLIUM. In: AltMedDex® Evaluations [Internet database]. Greenwood Village, Colo: Thomson Reuters (Healthcare) Inc. Updated periodically. Retrieved on March 01, 2014 from: http://www.micromedexsolutions.com/micromedex2/librarian/ND_T/evidencexpert/ND_PR/evidencexpert/CS/775BED/ND_AppProduct/evidencexpert/DUPLICATIONSHIELDSYNC/CA19FA/ND_PG/evidencexpert/ND_B/evidencexpert/ND_P/evidencexpert/PFActionId/evidencexpert.DisplayAltMedEvalDocument?docId=13&contentSetId=60&topicId=clinicalApplicationsSection&subtopicId=therapeuticUsesSection.
- Dupont HL, Capusto EG. Persistent diarrhea in travelers. Clinical Infectious Diseases 1996; 22:124-8.
- Bliss DZ, Jung HJ, Savik K, et al. Supplementation with Dietary Fiber Improves Fecal Incontinence. Nursing Research 2001; 50 (4): 203-213.
- Dupont HL, Capusto EG. Persistent diarrhea in travelers. Clinical Infectious Diseases 1996; 22:124-8.
- Hayden UL, McGUIRK SM, WEST SE, et al. Psyllium Improves Fecal Consistency and Prevents Enhanced Secretory Responses in Jejunal Tissues of Piglets Infected with ETEC. Digestive Diseases and Sciences 1998; 43 (11): 2536-2541.