1. Healthy Benefits to Eating More Fiber
It's well known that a diet high in fiber relieves constipation, but it can also help prevent other digestive issues like hemorrhoids and irritable bowel syndrome. Fiber helps lower your cholesterol and can help regulate your blood sugar by slowing the absorption of sugar. It's helpful in preventing Type 2 diabetes. It's possible that a high fiber diet helps prevent colon cancer. High fiber foods also help you feel full longer, which helps in aiding your weight loss efforts.
2. Eat These High Fiber Foods Daily
Whenever possible, eat raw fruits and vegetables. Leave the skin on if it's edible for an extra fiber boost. Raspberries, broccoli, pears and apples are your highest fiber sources in the fruit and vegetable group. Beans, peas, whole grains, whole wheat pasta, brown rice, nuts and seeds are other foods high in fiber. Generally, the less processed a food is, the higher the fiber content is going to be.
3. Simple Switches to Boost Your Fiber Intake
Choose a whole grain cereal to start your day. Check the labels to find a cereal with five or more grams of fiber in them. Often the words "fiber" or "bran" allude to the high fiber content in the cereal. Eat a piece of fresh fruit instead of drinking a glass of juice. You can sprinkle wheat bran into a casserole or meatloaf, onto your yogurt or even into cookies before baking them. Bran cereal can be used for crunch as a topping on salads, soups or desserts. Throw some canned beans onto your salad for an added protein and fiber boost.
4. Drink Water With Fiber
Increase your fiber intake slowly, to give your digestive track time to get used to it. It can be uncomfortable to suddenly start eating mass amounts of fiber, which can cause gas and bloating. Most importantly, increase your water intake as you up your fiber intake to ensure that your stool stays soft. Without the extra water, fiber isn't going to do much to relieve constipation and might even make you feel worse.
5. Choosing Fiber Supplements vs. Fiber in Whole Foods
Taking a fiber supplement, either in pill form or the kind you mix into water, isn't a bad idea so long as you attempt to get the majority of your fiber from whole foods. Fiber supplements offer a very specific kind of fiber, whereas the fiber you get from food comes in both soluble and insoluble forms. Soluble fiber dissolves to a gel like consistency in your intestines while insoluble fiber keeps its form, helping food to move through the digestive track.
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