Why Is Fiber in the Diet?

Fiber is the indigestible portion of the plant foods in your diet. There are two types of fiber, soluble and insoluble. Soluble fiber dissolves in water, whereas insoluble fiber does not. These characteristics allow fiber to perform important functions in your body that other foods in your diet cannot.

Weight Control

Eating foods that are high in fiber may also help you control your weight. Fiber slows down the rate at which your stomach empties. When your stomach takes longer to empty, you stay full for a longer period. If you are full, you tend to eat less. This can help you maintain a healthy weight or lose weight if it is necessary. Foods that are high in fiber usually contain a lot of volume without a lot of calories. High-volume, low-density foods fill up your stomach faster than low-volume, high-density foods, causing you to feel full faster and can decrease the tendency to overeat.

Bowel Health

One of the most well-known roles of fiber is keeping your bowels healthy. Fiber helps to pull water into the digestive tract, softening your stool and making it easier to pass, which can reduce your risk of becoming constipated. When stools are easier to pass, it also allows you to strain less, which can reduce pressure in your colon. Reduced colon pressure can also lead to reduced risk of hemorrhoids and the digestive disease diverticulitis.

Chronic Diseases

Following a diet that is high in fiber has been linked to a decreased risk of developing chronic diseases such as heart disease and diabetes. Fiber helps to slow down the rate at which your body absorbs sugar in your digestive tract. Slowing down the absorption of sugar can help to control the glucose levels in your blood, preventing rapid increases or decreases. Keeping your blood glucose levels steady can help reduce your risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Fiber also binds to bile acids in your small intestine, preventing your body from reabsorbing them. This signals your liver to produce more bile acids by using up cholesterol in your bloodstream. This process can reduce your cholesterol levels and decrease your risk of developing heart disease.

Considerations

In order to gain these benefits from the fiber in your diet, it is important that you meet your fiber recommendations, which are provided by the Food and Nutrition Board. If you are a man aged 50 or younger, you should consume 38 g of fiber per day. If you are a woman of the same age, your fiber requirements are 25 g per day. If you are a man over the age of 50, your fiber needs drop to 30 g daily. If you are a woman over 50, you need only 21 g daily.