The effect of food on the movement of pellets in the gastro-intestinal tract.

The effect of food on the movement of pellets in the gastro-intestinal tract was investigated in seven volunteers, either by means of X-rays taken after oral administration of barium sulfate pellets or by means of saliva concentration profiles of lithium obtained after oral administration of lithium sulfate controlled-release pellets. The X-ray studies showed that food had an effect on the time required for the pellets to leave the stomach and on their degree of dispersion in the small intestine, but not on other parameters. The studies with the lithium sulfate controlled-release pellets showed that food had a significant effect only in one in three subjects.