Every other food product advertisement tosses the phrase “filled with fiber and nutrients” but what does this ‘fibre’ even mean? Dietary fibre provides multiple health benefits from improving digestion, helping in weight management and lowering heart disease. Including fibre rich foods is essential to stay healthy.
In this blog we will understand what are dietary fibre, what its benefits are, and which foods high in dietary fibre and protein should be a regular part of your diet.
What are Dietary Fibre?
Dietary fibers are not one specific compound but rather a complex group of compounds that are found in plant-based foods such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains, beans, and pulses. Fibers are carbohydrates that cannot be fully digested in our guts. Dietary fibers can be used in various functional foods such as drinks, bakeries, beverages, and meat products (1).
Different types of fiber
Fiber includes non-starch polysaccharides (which affects small and large intestines) such as cellulose, inulin, dextrin, pectin, chitins, waxes, beta-glucans, and oligosaccharides
The two types are soluble and insoluble.
Higher fiber-containing foods have both soluble and insoluble fiber, which makes it hard for people to differentiate. So, they can focus on overall fiber intake.
- Soluble fiber
Soluble fibers dissolve in the water and form a gel-like substance in the stomach. Bacteria present in the stomach later break the gel down in the large intestine. Soluble fibers provide some calories to the individual.
The following are the benefits of soluble fiber:
- Lowers LDL cholesterol in the body by affecting how the body absorbs dietary fats and cholesterol
- Slows the absorption of other carbohydrates through digestion, which helps regulate blood sugar levels.
Sources of soluble fiber include:
- Beans– a cup of black beans has 4.8 g of soluble fiber, while the light-red kidney beans have4g and navy beans have 4.4g
- Fruits: Pears have levels of pectin, soluble fiber, and other fruits that have high soluble fiber including oranges, nectarines, apricots, and apples.
- Oats: a single bowl of oatmeal that is made of ¾ cup of dry oats contains 3g of soluble fiber.
- Vegetables: half a cup of brussel sprout contains 2g, while the flesh of sweet potatoes contains 1.8g of soluble fiber
- Insoluble fiber
Insoluble fibers do not dissolve in the water, they are not easy to digest and pass through the gastrointestinal tract mostly intact, and do not provide any calories.
It helps build bulk in the stool, helps a person pass stool more quickly, and helps prevent constipation.
Good sources of insoluble fibers include:
- Fruits
- Whole grain
- Nuts
- Vegetables
How much fiber do you need?
As per the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (2), the recommended intake of dietary fiber in a 2,000-calorie diet should be:
- For adult females an estimated 25 grams per day
- For adult males an estimated 38g per day
People need lesser fiber as they age, women at 50 years require only 21 g while men at 30 g per day. While for women who are pregnant, or breastfeeding should aim at least 28g per day.
Benefits of Dietary Fibre
1. Helps to Improve Gut Health
Fiber is essential for keeping the gut healthy, eating sufficient fiber can help prevent or relieve constipation, by moving the waste smoothly through the body. It also encourages healthy gut microbiota.
As per a review, it was suggested that dietary fiber increases the bulk of the stool and helps promote regular and healthy bowel movements, also reducing the time that waste spends inside the intestines.
Dietary fiber has a positive impact on gastrointestinal disorders, including:
- colorectal ulcer– anal fissure that may occur due to the passing of hard and large stools
- Hiatal hernias:A condition that causes the upper part of the stomach to push up through the diaphragm muscle.
- gastroesophageal reflux disease: a condition that occurs when stomach acid repeatedly flows back into the tube that connects the mouth and stomach (esophagus).
- diverticular disease: a digestive disease that affects the large intestine
- Haemorrhoids: also called piles, it refers to inflamed and swollen veins in the rectum and anus region that cause bleeding and discomfort.
Higher fiber-containing diets can help prevent colon cancer, irritable bowel syndrome, and Crohn’s disease. Some research has also indicated that duodenal ulcers, cholelithiasis, Hiatal hernias, and hemorrhoids can be prevented or treated through dietary fiber (3).
2. Helps to Reduce the Risk of Diabetes
A study suggested that consuming high amounts of dietary fiber, especially cereal fiber, may help in preventing the incidences of developing type 2 diabetes. Some evidence shows a small reduction in fasting blood glucose concentration. Fiber can also help slow down the body’s absorption of sugar and help prevent blood sugar spikes after meals (4).
3. Helps in Weight Management
Is fiber good for weight loss? A study observed the effects of dietary fibers on hunger, energy intake, satiety, and body composition in healthy individuals and found that increased intake of soluble or insoluble fibers increases post-meal satiety and decreases subsequent hunger.
Another study published on fiber effects on weight management suggested that something as simple as eating 30 grams of fiber each day can help you lose weight and lower blood pressure and improve the body’s response to insulin just as effectively as a complicated diet (5).
4. Helps to Normalise Bowel Movement
Soluble fibre found in high fibre foods like oats, peas, beans, apples, citrus fruits, carrots, and barley helps to normalise your bowel movement. Soluble fibre helps to increase the weight and size of your stool and softens it. A heavier or a bulky tool is easier to pass, decreasing your chance of constipation. So, if you are suffering from loose, watery stools a high fiber diet might be the best solution for you.
5. Helps to Lower Cholesterol Levels
Fibre helps to lower cholesterol levels by lowering low-density lipoprotein, or “bad,” cholesterol. Some types of soluble fibre can also lower LDL cholesterol which is responsible for heart diseases.
Conclusion
Dietary fibre is an essential part of a healthy diet. Dietary fibre has multiple health benefits to the body like improving digestion and gut health, reducing cholesterol, reducing weight and improving bowel movement. Foods like oats, lentils, fruits, green leafy vegetables are high in fibre and need to be part of your daily diet.
FAQs
1. What are the health benefits of dietary fiber?
Health benefits of fibre include:
- Helps in weight loss
- Helps improve gut health
- Helps to normalise bowel movement
- Helps to reduce cholesterol
2. What are high fiber foods for weight loss?
High fibre foods for weight loss are:
- Oats
- Avocados
- Apples
- Bananas
- Brussel Sprouts
3. What are healthy fiber foods?
Healthy fibre foods are foods rich in soluble or insoluble fibre like lentils, whole grains, vegetables and fruits.
4. How much fiber per day?
- For adult females an estimated 25 grams per day
- For adult males an estimated 38g per day
