Abstract
Helicobacter pylori (H. Pylori) infection is the main bacterial cause of several gastrointestinal disorders. Studies on the prevalence and predisposing factors of H. pylori infection on different populations and geographical areas are reporting conflicting results. This study aims to estimate the prevalence of H. pylori infection in a population of symptomatic adults seeking care at tertiary level in the Kingdom of Bahrain
and examine the association between dietary habits and other factors with H. pylori infection. The study is a hospital-based retrospective, crosssectional analytical study combining data from medical records for H. pylori
status, other comorbidities, and biochemical parameters with sociodemographic, lifestyle and dietary habits information using a telephone interview. The study was conducted on 200 patients between January and September 2021. A validated food frequency questionnaire was used to collect information about dietary habits. Binary logistic regression was applied to test the association between H. pylori infection with
sociodemographic, lifestyle, dietary habits, and other health-related factors.
The prevalence of H. pylori infection among the studied group was 55.5 %. H. pylori infection was significantly higher among participants with a high school education or less (44.1%). Among dietary habits, the mean of frequency of green tea, coffee and honey intake was significantly lower among the H. pylori infected participants compared to their non-infected counterparts. Vitamin D level was significantly lower among participants with H. pylori infection and each unit decrease in serum vitamin D was
associated with an increased risk of H. pylori infection by 1.1 time (OR = 1.1; 95% CI:1.05, 1.18; p=<0.001). The study concluded that educational level, consumption of honey, green tea and coffee, and serum vitamin D level were significantly associated with H. pylori infection. Additional
studies are needed to estimate the prevalence and predisposing factors of H. pylori infection in the general population.