Benefits of Fiber in Your Diet

Benefits of Fiber in Your Diet Overview

Fiber plays such an important part in digestion and there are many benefits of fiber in your diet. Since your body can’t digest fiber it helps to move your stool through your digestive tract and colon. read below in more detail the health benefits of high fiber intake and the best food fiber sources.

Definition Dietary Fiber

To recap from the section on fiber – click here. Dietary fiber, or roughage, is plant-based nutrient (carbohydrate) that you eat, and your Digestive System doesn’t absorb or digest. In other words, fiber stays mostly intact as it passes through the intestinal tract. Yet, on its trip, fiber works very hard and there are many benefits of fiber in your diet.

best food fiber sources

Fiber intake benefits your health in many ways and fiber is found in varying quantities in all plant foods. The best food fiber sources are:

Fruits including figs, avocados, bananas, plums, pears, prunes, berries, apples and quinces.
Grains including whole wheat, graham flour, oatmeal, whole oats, brown rice, whole-grain corn, popcorn and corn bran.
Legumes such as beans, peas, lupines, alfalfa, clover, lentils, and soybeans.
Nuts with almonds and pistachios being the highest in dietary fiber.
Seeds such as sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds and flax seeds.
Vegetables such as green beans, cauliflower, zucchini, broccoli, carrots, and artichokes.

A high fiber diet benefits your health as follows:

Blood Sugar Control: Fiber slows the rate that sugar absorbs into your bloodstream. This prevents your blood glucose levels to rise too fast and help you to manage type 2 diabetes and limit its complications.
Reduce Heart Disease Risks: Fiber in your diet decreases the risk of cardiovascular disease. Soluble fiber modestly lowers Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels. The soluble fiber attacks cholesterol particles and takes them out of the body, reducing the “bad” cholesterol levels.
Lowers Colon Cancer Risk: Fiber keeps your colon clean and healthy by assisting in moving stool through your digestive tract and colon. Fiber aids in moving harmful carcinogens through the digestive tract. Carcinogens are substances capable of causing cancer in living tissue.
Fiber Benefits Weight Loss: Fiber makes food move faster through your intestines can help you to feel full. It therefore assists with weight loss since it helps you to eat less.
Reducing Constipation: Fiber helps to regulate your digestion with regular and soft bowel movements. As soluble fiber pass through your digestive system it soaks up water that helps to bulk up your stool and prevent constipation and diarrhea. Insoluble fiber helps keeps you regular and avoid bowel-related health problems.
Improve Skin Health: Fiber helps acne or rashes by preventing fungus and yeast being excreted through your skin.