FIBER. It’s a good word! An important and vital part of your daily health and diet. It’s not just a word because if you look around, it’s a thing and it’s everywhere. Plants, trees, nuts and for sure, store bought supplements. I like to think of it as a net that captures and scoops up the food we eat, kind of a mini-digestive system that helps move the food in its various components through our bodies.
Why is it important? Well to highlight the top 5 benefits of Fiber:
- It promotes digestive health. You really don’t want the details but trust me, fiber is like Mr. Clean.
- It helps lower blood cholesterol which is bad, gooey stuff in your blood stream.
- It helps prevent heart disease. This is like having a clean running motor vs. a junked up motor.
- It helps control blood-sugar levels by delaying the absorption of sugar. This gives your body a fighting chance to stabilize insulin.
- It helps with WEIGHT LOSS by making you feel full for longer.
Getting enough fiber daily is easy if you go green (vegetables). Every meal, if half your meal is green you’ll be close to the recommended amount per day. That amount is 38 grams for men and 25 grams for women. These amounts actually decrease once you pass the age of 50. Why? Because you have to eat less because your metabolism is slower. Personally I don’t see having to eat less as a benefit of passing 50, but it’s the facts. Aging does not imply weight gain is ok.
If you are currently low on fiber, add it in daily, but slowly. Don’t go from zero to 25 or 38 in a day. This is one of those areas when slow and steady wins the day. Be the tortoise not the hare. A gradual increase is easy. If you cannot add fiber via food, then be sure to add it via over the counter supplements. They are inexpensive and usually tasteless while dissolving in your no sugar added drinks.
