In this article,
I'm dishing up a savory secret that some of you may not know about yet.
It's amazing to me that something as simple and readily available as
fiber can be such a helpful tool for achieving and maintaining a
healthy weight. If you aren't already eating enough fiber, then I
challenge you to add more to your diet this week. Read on to find out
why and how to bulk up your diet.
Fiber has so many great benefits and is absolutely essential to a
healthy diet. Fiber is the part of fruits, vegetables, and grains that
doesn’t get digested; it actually travels through your entire digestive
system and out, cleaning along the way. Since our bodies don’t have the
enzymes to break down fiber, we can’t absorb it, which means we don’t
get calories from it. Did you catch that? Fiber provides ZERO calories,
which means it gives you bang without the buck. It slows down the early digestive process in the stomach, which helps to keep you full longer. When
you feel full longer, you don't get as hungry between meals, which
means you won't snack as much, and you won't consume as many calories
throughout the day.
Since it slows down digestion, fiber also slows the rate at which your
blood sugar rises after a meal. This is important because when you eat
mostly processed white flours with very little fiber, your blood sugar
rises more quickly and is more likely to crash afterwards. When your
blood sugar crashes, or lowers quickly, you feel hungry and are more
likely to snack again sooner.
It has been said that fiber is like a broom for your GI tract because it sort of sweeps as it travels through. As a result, fiber has been shown to lower cholesterol levels, as well as reduce the risk for heart disease and colon cancer. Since
it adds bulk to your stool, it reduces the risk of diverticulosis
(pouches in the colon), constipation, and hemorrhoids. Lastly, fiber
increases the production of “good bacteria” in the colon, which helps
the immune system. Breakfast is a great time to fit in a good amount of
fiber, but try to squeeze more fiber in throughout the rest of the day
too by eating fruits and vegetables (with the skin when possible) as
well as whole grains.
Look on the label for fiber content (under Total Carbohydrate); try
to find grains (e.g., breads, tortillas, rice, pasta, bagels, English
muffins, waffles, and buns) that have at least 2 grams of fiber per
serving. Try to find a breakfast cereal that has at least 5 grams of
fiber per serving. A high-fiber breakfast helps you stay full
until lunch without cravings for snacks. If you don’t like any of the
high-fiber cereals, then try mixing one of them with your favorite.
This way, you’ll get to taste your favorite cereal and get extra fiber
at the same time (the best of both worlds). Here's a tasty combo: Mix
about 1/2 cup of Fiber One® with Honey Clusters with about 2/3 cup of
Cinnamon Toast Crunch®. Eating healthier and losing weight in a way
that you can actually maintain long-term is all about moderation and
compromise.
Adults need 20–35 grams of fiber per day. Your kiddos need about five
grams plus one gram for each year of age. Be sure to increase your
fiber intake gradually and drink more fluids to help decrease the
potential side effects.
April Adamswww.AntiFadDiet.comI am a Registered Dietitian and author with years of experience in weight loss counseling. If you are tired of wasting your time on fad diets that leave you worse off than when you started and would like to learn more about how to eat healthier and lose weight, then visit my website to get your copy of my book entitled, Back to Basics: A Practical Guide for Healthier Eating and Weight Loss. In my book, I provide practical tips that will help you make gradual changes in your diet so that you can reach and maintain a healthy weight in the most painless way possible.
