Thick Substance
Dietary fiber is the roughage or bulk in plant foods that your body cannot digest or absorb, the Mayo Clinic explains. It passes through your stomach, small intestine, colon and eventually out of the body. The amount of fiber differs among plant foods, so the Mayo Clinic recommends eating a wide variety of high-fiber foods. There are two kinds of fiber, soluble and insoluble. Because soluble fiber dissolves in water to form a thick substance, it can help lower blood cholesterol and glucose levels. Soluble fiber is believed to reduce the absorption of cholesterol in the intestines. It helps prevent LDL, or bad cholesterol from forming in the arteries. Soluble fiber can be found in oatmeal, kidney beans, apples, pears, plantains, barley and prunes. It only takes about 10 grams of soluble fiber a day to decrease total and LDL cholesterol, according to the Mayo Clinic. You can get 6 grams of fiber from 1 1/2 cups of cooked oatmeal and add another 4 grams by topping it off with fiber-rich fruit. Insoluble fiber, found in whole-wheat flour, wheat bran, nuts and vegetables, helps the movement of material through the digestive tract to aid in the digestive process. A high-fiber diet may also reduce blood pressure and inflammation to further protect against heart disease.
Slow Digestion
Soluble fiber has the ability to hold a high amount of water, explains the Columbia University Health Services. When it is dissolved in water it turns gooey and then travels slowly through the digestive tract. It attaches to bile acids in the intestine and carries them out of the body as waste. Bile acids are made from cholesterol. Soluble fiber helps the body absorb less dietary cholesterol. Oats are considered high in fiber and contain beta-glucan, the water-soluble fiber that may be the active ingredient that decreases LDL cholesterol. Two servings of oats a day can reduce cholesterol 2 percent to 3 percent more than what is achieved through a low-fat diet alone, it was reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Other sources of soluble fiber include pinto beans, Brussels sprouts, oat bran, oranges, broccoli, grapefruit, spinach, carrots, brown rice, whole wheat bread and grapes.
Heart Health
Along with reducing LDL cholesterol levels, soluble fiber is also believed to decrease the risk of heart disease and may slow the progression of heart disease in people at high risk, according to the American Heart Association (AHA). The AHA recommends you get at least half of your grain intake from whole-grain foods. Oats have the highest proportion of soluble fiber of any grain.
