What is fiber in food?

Fiber also known as roughage is the part of plant food which is not easily digested by our digestive system. The food with high fiber has a lot of health benefits, and high fiber food primarily includes vegetables, fruits, legumes, and whole grains primarily. Fiber is of two types soluble and insoluble, and both of them are very important for health. Insoluble fiber adds bulk to the stool, helps with constipation and it does not dissolve water. While soluble fiber absorbs water, forming a gel-like texture in the digestive system, soluble fiber will help lower your cholesterol level and regulate your blood sugar level. In this article, we will look into what all foods contain fibre and what are the advantages of having fibre rich diet.

Advantages of having fibre in food

A healthy diet includes dietary fibre as an integral part. Fibre in food brings various health benefits, some of those are as follows:

1.    Protects from various disease

Various studies have examined dietary fiber's effect on health and the heart and found positive results. It helps in preventing cardiovascular disease while also reducing blood pressure.

2.    Better gut health

High Fiber food is proven effective for keeping your gut healthy. Eating fiber helps with constipation by assisting the waste to move smoothly through the body and enough healthy gut microbiota.

3.    Reduced risk of diabetes

Another advantage of fiber in food is that fiber can help slow down the body's absorption of sugar, so if you add more high fiber food to your diet, it will benefit by preventing blood sugar spikes after your meals. People who eat food with high fiber, especially cereal fiber, have low risks of getting type-2 diabetes.

4.    Weight management

If you aim to lose weight, adding high fiber food to your diet will help regulate weight loss because fiber makes you feel fuller for a long duration and thus you need to take frequent diet portions which make it easy to lose weight.

5.    Lower cholesterol levels

The fiber found in beans, flaxseed, oats and oat bran is proven to help lower your blood cholesterol levels by lowering bad cholesterol low-density lipoprotein. Food with high fiber also has other heart-health benefits like reducing blood pressure and inflammation.

6.    Helps to maintain bowel health

A high-fiber diet lowers the risk of developing small pouches in your colon while also reducing the risk of colorectal cancer. According to a review, it increases the bulk of the stool and promotes regular bowel movements while reducing waste retention time inside your intestines.

Types of dietary fiber

Dietary fiber includes cellulose, dextrin, insulin, lignin, and chitins, etc. There are two types of dietary fiber- soluble and insoluble. Most foods high in fiber contain both insoluble and soluble fiber, so you need to focus on overall fiber intake instead of thinking about the difference.

1.    Soluble fiber

It dissolves in water to form a gel-like substance in the stomach. Later, bacteria break the gel down in the large intestine. Sources of soluble fiber are beans, oats, fruits, nuts, and vegetables.
Benefits of soluble fiber-
•    It helps lower LDL cholesterol in the blood by affecting how the body absorbs dietary fat.
•    It slows the absorption of carbohydrates through digestion, which helps regulate blood sugar levels.

2.    Insoluble fiber

It does not dissolve in water but passes through the gastrointestinal tract, and it helps build bulk in the stool and helps with constipation problems. Sources of insoluble fiber are fruits, nuts, wholegrain foods, and vegetables.

How much fiber should you intake?

The recommended intake of fiber in 2000 calories diet is 38gm per day for adult males and 25gm per day for adult females.
Best choices for food with high fiber
If you feel you are not getting enough fiber, you should boost your intake. Here is the list of choices we would recommend-
•    Whole grain products
•    Vegetables
•    Fruits
•    Nuts and seeds
•    Beans, peas and other types of legumes
I would not recommend processed or refined food such as canned vegetables and fruits, pasta, white bread, and pulp-free juices because they are low in fiber content.

Tips to include more fiber in your diet

If you feel you do not have enough fiber in your diet, you can try following these suggestions-
•    Start a good day- you can eat high fiber cereal in breakfast, you can opt for whole grain, or add some unprocessed wheat bran to your favorite cereal.
•    Switch to whole grains- try to eat at least half of the whole grains of the total grain you eat. Eat bread that lists whole wheat or similar ingredient on the label, experiment with wild rice, whole-wheat pasta, brown rice, and bulgur wheat, etc.
•    Add fibre in baked items- you can use whole grain flour when baking. Try to add crushed bran cereal, and unprocessed wheat gram to your cakes, muffins, and cookies.
•    Eat more fruits and vegetables- fruits and vegetables are an excellent source of fiber, vitamins, and minerals. So try to eat a good amount of fruits every day.

Conclusion

By now, you would have understood why we need fiber in food and how it is an essential component of a healthful diet. There are various benefits of adding a good amount of fiber in food. For example, it significantly reduces the risks of different health conditions. But according to a report, most people in America do not consume the required amount of fiber, so they find  fiber supplements as a promising alternative, which is a good option, but can’t replace the goodness of natural fibre one have via diet. Also, drink plenty of water. When it absorbs water, it works more efficiently and gives better gut health outcomes.  Finally, remember not to overeat fiber because it can promote bloating and cramping. However, if you eat it right, it will help you stay healthy.

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