Dietary Fibre is made up of the indigestible parts of plants, which pass relatively unchanged through our stomach and intestines. It is a structural component found in certain foods.
Something as simple as aiming to eat 30 grams of fibre each day can help you lose weight, lower your blood pressure, and improve your body's response to insulin.
Yes, as simple as that!
Fibre might just be the key to healthy weight management .
Foods high in fibre:
Fruits, vegetables, salads
Nuts and seeds
wholegrain foods; Rolled Oats, Brown rice, wholegrain pasta, wholegrain bread
oat bran, wheat bran, barley, psyllium, ancient grains
Legumes – beans, lentils, peas, chickpeas
Fibre affect how your body absorbs carbohydrates and tells your cells how to process them once they are absorbed. Fibre slows the absorption of sugar in your gut. It also orchestrates the fundamental biology that weight loss drugs tap into, but in a natural way. Your microbiome transforms fibre into signals that stimulate the gut hormones that are the natural forms of these drugs. These in turn regulate how rapidly your stomach empties, how tightly your blood sugar levels are controlled and even how hungry you feel.
Unfortunately, the western diets get the majority of their carbohydrates stripped of their natural fibres. Think white rice, white flour, sugary breakfast cereals, chips, baked goods, packaged snacks and juices have removed these fibres.
Also, busy schedules, access and availability to fresh produce, all contribute to less priority made to include more fruit, vegetables and salads with all our meals. What is easier than toast and cheese for lunch right!
It may not be surprising, that the LACK of fibre can contribute to the following conditions:
Diabetes
Insulin resistance
Obesity
Constipation
Diarrhea
Leaky gut syndrome
IBS
Diverticulitis
Bowel cancer
Limiting simple sugars and refined carbohydrates may improve certain aspects of metabolic health.
But a more sustainable and comprehensive way of improving health may be increasing unprocessed, complex and slowly absorbed carbohydrates that comes with more natural fibres.
It is therefore not just about what to avoid in order to loose weight and improve your health, it is what to EAT MORE OF, to reap the results.
So make ONE change today: add more fibre to your meals!
Lets compare | Low fibre intake | Improved fibre intake |
This example will provide only 17g of fibre | This example will provide 32g of fibre | |
Breakfast | Instant Oats | Rolled oats 1 tbsp seeds 1 bsp unsalted nuts 1 small banana |
Snack | Rusk and Tea | Apple, and almonds |
Lunch | 2 slices of brown toast Margarine Cheese | 2 slices of wholegrain toast Avocado 2 eggs Cup of tomato, cucumber and gherkins |
Snack | Provitas with Bovril | Provitas with Hummus |
Dinner | Chicken Nuggets Chips | Grilled chicken Baked potatoe Mixed vegetables |
Get in touch for a more comprehensive analysis of your fibre intake, and how to make adjustments that will fit your own metabolic make-up.
Comments