Short processing process
There are aliments like fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds and pulses that are all good sources of fibre. However, with foods that are very rich in cereal such as breakfast cereals like granola, pasta, rice and bread, the quantity of fibre depends on how much of the external layer of the grain has been stripped away during the refining process. The longest processing a cereal has been through, the minor content of fibre will have. Temporarily, it’s not just fibre that’s lost during the refining process, vitamins and minerals are also established in the outer layers of the grain, so when these are subtracted, these vitamins and minerals are also gone.
A tip: when doing the grocery always try choosing ‘brown’ over ‘white’ products. This means croissants, cornflakes and white rice and sugar should stay on the shelf while wholegrain bread, whole-wheat pasta, bran flakes and brown rice and sugar should go home with you.
Why is fibre important?
Fibre is an important component of a healthy balanced diet. A diet that is high in fibre has many health benefits. It can help prevent heart disease, improves digestive health, helps preventing some cancers and diabetes.
Fibre helps your digestive system to process food and absorb nutrients; it also makes you feel fuller and so helps to control your appetite.
Types of fibre
There are two types of fibre: Insoluble and Soluble fibre. Both are beneficial for the body and most plants contain a mix of soluble and insoluble fibre.
Make sure you combine both types of fibre on your diet and for a better result don’t forget drinking water.
Insoluble fibre
This kind of fibre contains cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin. It helps your bowel to pass food by making stools softs and bulky. This fibre helps prevent constipation.
Some examples of foods containing insoluble fibre are:
- beans
- wheat bran
- wholegrain breads
- wholegrain cereals
- wholemeal breads
- wholemeal cereals
- wholemeal pasta
- whole-wheat flour
- brown rice
- fruits with edible seeds
- lentils
- maize
- oats
- pulses
Soluble fibre
Soluble fibre attracts water and turns to gel during the digestion process. This slows digestion. Some types of this fibre may help lower cholesterol and controls blood sugar. This is generally found in all fruit and vegetables, but there are other foods rich in soluble fibre:
- legumes
- oats
- pears
- strawberries
- apples
- barley
- citrus
- guar gum
What quantity of fibre shall we eat?
Ideally, adults should aim for an intake of at least 20 grams a day. A word of caution: if you would like to increase your fibre intake from a relatively low level, it is best to do it progressively.
This is because a rapid increase may produce wind, swelling and stomach cramps, which can be pretty uncomfortable for a little while. A steady and gradual increase will avoid this problem.
What happens when your diet is low in fibre?
Eating a diet that is very low in fibre may contribute to many disorders, some of them include:
- Diverticulitis
- Irritable bowel syndrome
- Overweight and obesity
- Coronary heart disease
- Diabetes
- Colon cancer
Featured images:
- License: Creative Commons image source
- License: Creative Commons image source
- License: Creative Commons image source
Laura is originally from Barcelona, Spain; she is currently living in London, where she moved two years ago to start a Marketing career. She likes keeping her healthy equilibrated Mediterranean diet and enjoys having a healthy lifestyle. She is currently blogging for http://www.lizis.co.uk/ about nutrition and recipes.
