Fabulous Fiber

I’m sure that you have all heard how wonderful fiber is for you and that it helps with weight loss and maintenance, improving cholesterol levels and reducing the risk for certain cancers. Have you ever wondered why fiber is so beneficial for our bodies and how it helps with these conditions?

Fiber is a food component that our bodies can not digest. We lack an enzyme to break down the fiber for absorption. This means that it goes completely through our digestive track. This is where most of fibers health benefits take place. It is considered a heart health nutrient for two reasons, the first is its ability to bind with fat and cholesterol and remove it from our body, thus improving our cholesterol levels and secondly because the foods that contain fiber and naturally low in fat and high in nutritional value, phytochemicals (protective food components), vitamins and minerals.

Weight loss and maintenance: Fiber bulks our stomachs, making us feel full more quickly and for a longer period of time. This helps us control hunger and helps to prevent overeating. Because we can’t digest fiber, it slows down the digestion process and glucose (energy) enters our bloodstream at a slower, steadier rate. This maximizes the fuel efficiency of our food and allows our body to use the energy more efficiently.  In other words, we get maximum gas mileage so to speak.

Heart Health: Fiber binds with fat and cholesterol in the stomach. These fats and cholesterol are now no longer available for digestion and absorption. Fat and cholesterol are not only found in the foods we eat, but also in the bile in our stomachs. We typically recycle the bile in our stomachs. So when we are eating a low-fat heart healthy diet, we are still improving our cholesterol levels by removing fats and cholesterol from our bile. This forces the liver to replace the lost bile – increasing HDL cholesterol, the good cholesterol and lowering the LDL, the bad cholesterol and triglyceride levels. (HDL is the “good” cholesterol because it takes from the blood to the liver for repackaging. LDL is the “bad” cholesterol because it deposits into the blood increasing the risk of plaque formation).

Cancer Prevention: A diet low high in fiber is associated with reducing your risk for colon, prostate and breast cancers. First it keeps things moving in the digestive track, helping to regularly remove toxins and keeping the stools in normal consistency. Secondly, as mentioned above, the foods rich in fiber are generally loaded with antioxidants and phytochemicals which help to protect against cancer.

Foods rich in fiber:
All fruits and vegetables
Beans and legumes
Nuts and Seeds – the most heart healthy would be almonds, peanuts and soy nuts
Whole grain products – when choosing a whole wheat bread, it is important to read the ingredient list, the first ingredient should be whole wheat (oat, barley, soy, etc) flour. If the first word is enriched, you aren’t getting the maximum health value.

Ways to add fiber to your diet:
Cereals: Choose a whole grain cereal that is low in sugar and high in fiber. You are looking for around 5+ grams of fiber per serving. Some good choices that are tasty and kids love:
Barbara’s Bakery Brand: Puffins, Oat Squares and Shredded Spoonfuls
Kashi Brand: Heart to Heart
Nature’s Path: Organic Flax Plus flake or granola
I especially like the above brands as they are naturally sweetened with minimal added sugar.
Also good: Cheerios, oatmeal, shredded wheat, unsweetened raisin bran.

Use whole grain breads and pastas. Try using beans as a side entrée instead of pasta, potatoes or white rice. Choose brown rice over white rice; also try other grains such as quinoa, whole wheat couscous, spelt and polenta.

Read the ingredient list on other food items such as crackers and granola bars. Look for 2 or more grams of fiber per serving.

It is better to get the fiber from the foods you eat rather than taking a pill. Each time you eat a little fiber it is helping to improve cholesterol levels, bulk the stomach and maintain a healthy digestive tract.