Why Fiber Is So Important For Our Bodies! By Dietetic Intern: Maxwell T Premetz
Fiber is one of the most important aspects within our diet, but only 5-10% of American’s can meet the RDA for fiber set forth by the Food and Nutrition Board. Men should be acquiring 38 grams per day of fiber, while women should be consuming 25 grams per day. So, you may be wondering, what exactly does fiber do for my body and how can I obtain more to meet my daily goals?
How Fiber Helps Prevent the Onset of Diseases
Fiber plays a key role in many diseases, such as colorectal cancer, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. When it comes to colorectal cancer, fiber helps feed the beneficial bacteria in the gut, making your gut microbiome flourish and produce more short-chain fatty acids that help keep all those bowel cells healthy. It also increases bowel movements and binds carcinogens, which reduces the amount of harmful chemicals in the gut.
When it comes to type 2 diabetes, soluble fiber helps slow sugar absorption, manage weight, and improve insulin sensitivity. Fiber slows how quickly the body absorbs the food we eat, which in turn helps improve blood sugar levels and reduce the need for insulin. Foods high in fiber are also energy-rich and help consumers feel more satiated, decreasing the need for more food later.
For cardiovascular disease, fiber plays a key role in helping patients manage their blood pressure and cholesterol levels. As mentioned before, fiber helps the gut microbiome produce an increased number of short-chain fatty acids, which can also have anti-inflammatory effects and properties that help lower blood pressure levels in patients with hypertension. Fiber also binds to cholesterol in the intestines (soluble fiber at least) that catches and traps these cholesterol particles, so they do not enter the bloodstream. Fiber also helps our body lower the amount of both total cholesterol and circulating LDL cholesterol in the body, which we know as the “bad” cholesterol. This allows for excess cholesterol to not be reabsorbed, leading to its disposal when we go to the bathroom.
How do I Improve my Fiber Intake?
The first major step to increasing one’s fiber intake is looking at your diet. One major area that can increase your fiber intake is eating more whole grains instead of white grains. Whole grain pastas, breads, and rice have as much as 10 more grams of fiber compared to their white grain counterparts! Another way to improve fiber intake is by consuming more fruits and vegetables, which have a plethora of beneficial effects outside of their fiber content. Foods highest in fiber include beans, broccoli, avocados, raspberries, blueberries, apples, and other dried fruits.
If you feel like you are still struggling to meet your fiber needs and are looking for a boost or a place to start, one area to try and incorporate more fiber is looking for snacks that may be higher in fiber. Certain snacks that provide a beneficial amount of fiber are avocado hummus, black bean dip, popcorn, spiced chickpeas, or trail mix. Incorporating these snacks into your day and changing recipes to increase your fiber intake is a great start to meeting the RDA for fiber.
Ways to add fiber into your diet with snacks and meals includes adding a piece of fruit to your breakfast or lunch, such as a ½ cup of berries or adding flax meal or chia seeds to your smoothie or yogurt in the morning! For dinner, adding ½ cup of brussels sprouts or ½ cup of broccoli can add over 3-10 grams of fiber to your meals! This goes along well with other foods in your diet, such as whole grain pastas and whole grain breads, which already contain another 5-10 grams of fiber depending on the serving size.
Here’s a bonus handout with some great ideas to add fiber to your day!
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Meet Nicole
Registered Dietitian Nutritionist
Nicole is recognized state-wide and nationally as a Registered Dietitian and is also a Certified dietitian through the state of Wisconsin. She is also a Board Certified Sports Dietitian and a Certified Personal Trainer and Physical Fitness Instructor.
Nicole’s areas of expertise include: Wellness and lifestyle coaching, weight management, behavior modification, eating disorders, vegetarian lifestyles, gluten-free living, sports nutrition, recipe and menu design and development.
