Doctors, health experts and dieticians – all of them advise their clients and patients to give importance to a healthy diet, and they specifically say about fiber and their health benefits. When the body is deficient of fibers, it leads to many diseases and health issues, including obesity. In this column, I shall briefly explain some of the health benefits of fibres/fibers.
Fibre – Health Benefits
What is fibre/fiber in food content?
Fibre is a form of carbohydrate not absorbed by the body. Dietary fibre, or simply edible fibre, is found in vegetables, cereals, fruits etc. Fibres are made of cellulose, hemi-cellulose and pectin. Based on their solubility, they are broadly classified into two. Soluble fibres dissolve in water, which can reduce bad cholesterol and control blood sugar levels. Insoluble fibres never dissolve in water, yet they can block constipation.
As soluble fibres break down in the digestive process, our stomachs fill easily. Indirectly, it reduces obesity and related health issues. Those insoluble fibres directly reach the large intestine and become a part of the waste food. It also makes the excretion process easy.
So both types of fibres are important and good to the body. For an adult person, the average daily consumption of fibre is 20-35 grams.
How can fibers influence the health of children?
Fibres should form an integral part of kids’ diet plan. How much fibre does a kid need? There is a simple technique. Add an integer, 5 or 10, to the age of your kid. For instance, if her age is 10, 15-20 gms of fibre should be included in her daily diet. Kids need comparatively less fibre in their diet, yet they can’t be excluded.
What are the advantages of the intake of fibre-rich food?
1. Cholesterol – It reduces the level of bad cholesterol in human blood. Fibers that dissolve in water have the special power to reduce bad cholesterol.
2. To reduce body weight – Fibers which dissolve in water breaks the digestion process, giving an illusion of filled stomach. When calorie input reduces and water in the intestine is retained, you feel energetic for some time, and body weight reduces.
3. Reduces chances for cancer – To reduce the chances of intestinal and colon cancer, you can take more fibre-rich food.
4. Digestive health – It balances digestion and excretion process. It also reduces conditions such as diarrhoea and constipation. It also reduces the chances of conditions such as kidney stones, diverticulitis, haemorrhoids etc.
5. Healthy skin – When yeast and fungus are flushed out through skin, they form pimples. Intake of fibers, especially the plant seed Psyllium husk can help you to flush out body toxins and improve skin health.
6. Healthy heart – As studies suggest, more you add fibres to your daily diet, chances of heart attack reduces that much.
Which food items are abundant in fibres?
Fruits – Pears, strawberry, apple, banana, raspberry, sweet potato, pomegranate, guava, grapes and mangoes.
Vegetables – Carrot, beetroot, broccoli, tomato, dark green leafy vegetables like palak, methi, green spinach etc, cabbage and cauliflower.
Pulses – Different types of peas like chickpeas, pigeon pea, green gram, horse gram, soya beans etc.
Other food items – Gooseberry, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, pepper, oats etc
Always remember, in the case of cereals, fibers are contained in abundance in bran – For instance, wheat, rice, maize etc. When you remove the bran from these food products (same as the case of processed flours, cereals etc), fibre content will also be removed. That’s why dieticians and doctors suggest you to use whole wheat and other grains.
How can we improve the intake of fibre?
1. When you make a juice from fruits of your choice, you are destroying fibers along with it. It’s always good to eat fruits as a whole rather than making juices, if you are an adult.
2. Substitute maida (all-purpose flour) dishes, bread, pasta etc with whole grains of rice, wheat etc.
3. Substitute chips and chocolate bars with unprocessed vegetable/fruit salads. You can take such salads in regular breaks to block your food cravings. You can make salads using fresh carrots, beetroot, broccoli, salad cucumber, onions, tomatoes, cabbage etc.
4. For your daily lunch, prefer brown rice over white rice.
Some precautions while adding more fibre to your diet
Never increase fibre content in your food all of a sudden. Instead, slowly increase fibre intake. After some weeks, you can stabilise fibre intake. If you take fibre in excess, it can lead to constipation. So always ensure to drink sufficient water while adding more fibre to your diet. Kids should drink plenty of water. It improves the movement of fibres through the intestine.
Disclaimer: When you alter your daily diet to a fibre-rich diet, please consult your doctor or dietician prior to it. Your diet may change according to your age and health conditions. This article should be used for reference purposes only. As I am not a physician or diet expert, I am suggesting the same to you.
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