Dietary fiber serves to lower cholesterol levels, promotes a healthy colon, increases satiety from meals and manages glucose levels. Today, fiber is divided into two groups, soluble and insoluble fiber. The distinction between the groups is soluble fiber swells with water, while insoluble fiber doesn't absorb water. The foods you eat are a mixture of all types of fiber, but the composition differs depending on the food you eat.
Soluble Fiber
The role of soluble fiber in your diet is related to cholesterol-lowering abilities. Soluble fiber binds with bile acid and fat in your food. The action of lowering your cholesterol level is related to binding fat from the foods you eat, but also binding bile acid. Your liver takes cholesterol from your bloodstream to make bile acid, which emulsifies fats from food. This is why eating foods high in soluble fiber contributes to a cholesterol-lowering effect. Foods high in soluble fiber include fruits, especially apples, plums and tangerines, oats and oat bran, dried beans and legumes, psyllium husk, vegetables and flaxseed, according to Health Castle.
Insoluble Fiber
Insoluble fiber benefits your body by increasing fecal volume and transit time. This decreases the time your colon comes in contact with carcinogens or cancer- causing agents. The pH of the colon is also important in maintaining healthy cells and preventing disease as stated by Health Castle. Foods rich in insoluble fiber include dark green leafy vegetables, green beans, fruit and vegetable skins, especially carrots, beets, rhubarb, whole wheat products, seeds and nuts.
Functional Fiber
Functional fibers are fibers found in carbohydrates that have been removed through processing and can be supplemented in your diet to improve your overall health, according to nutrition expert, Sareen Gropper, Ph.D. Functional fibers include cellulose, pectin, lignin, gums, chitin and chitosan, polydextrose and beta-glucans. Beta-glucans have gained popularity as a supplement to lower cholesterol levels and possibly improve immune system function according to Beta Glucan Research. Chitosan is a dietary supplement, made from the vertebrae of crustaceans such as crabs and lobsters as well as yeast, used to lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels by binding fat in your small intestine, according to Gropper.
Recommended Intake
Fiber intake has been an objective of many associations involved in promoting healthy lifestyle and dietary changes such as the American Heart Association, American Dietetic Association and American Diabetes Association. In 2002, according to Gropper, the National Academy of Sciences Food and Nutrition Board established daily recommended intakes for fiber. Men between the ages of 19 to 50 are recommended to consume 38 g of fiber and men over the age of 51 are recommended to consume 21 g. Women aged 19 to 50 should consume 25 g of fiber per day. Women above the age of 51 are recommended to consume 21 g of fiber. Children and teenagers have different needs. Children below the age of 9 should consume 19 to 25 g per day. Male and female teenagers above the age of 9 are recommended to consume 26 to 38 g of fiber per day.
References
- HealthCastle.com: Fiber 101
- Beta Glucan Research: Beta Glucan Research -- Saccharomyces Cerevisiae
- "Advanced Nutrition and Human Metabolism"; Sareen S. Gropper, Jack L Smith and James L. Groff; 2008
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