Fibre – An Essential Part of Healthy Eating.

Greetings everyone.

For thousands of years mankind was largely vegetarian, so roughage or dietary fibre formed an integral part of our diet. Cellulose, the main part of fibre, is found in all plant cell walls, while lignin supports the plants cellulose structures. Pectin’s, the third component, are found in most ripe fruits.

However, with increasing affluence bought on by the industrial revolution, and especially after the lifting of food restrictions following the second world war, preferences for white bread grew, and meat gained a much larger place in the diet than vegetables. Fatty sugary foods such as biscuits and cakes were preferred to fresh raw fruits – especially as snacks.

Many nutritionists blame all this for the increase in bowel and heart disorders in the last two centuries. During that time, cases of constipation, Piles, and colon cancer as well as upper bowel cancers. People became overweight and developed high blood pressure placing undue even fatal strain on the heart. Both conventional medical and natural medicine practitioners believe that a high fibre diet helps to combat these disorders. Fibre is the part of the food that is not digested and absorbed by the body to produce energy. It comes in two forms, soluble and insoluble.

Insoluble

This is mostly found in whole grain cereals and bran. The indigestable cellulose and other indigestable components in the fibre give bulk to the bod’s waste products and speed their passage through the bowel. It is believed that the less time cancer causing waste is held in the bowel the less chance there is of tumours forming.

Soluble Fibre

This is contained in most ripe fruit and vegetables, particularly beans, lentils and peas. It slows up the absorption of nutrients in food  and delays the intake of sugar into the blood. It is believed to help people with type 1 diabetes. In some cases diabetics on high fibre diets have been able to reduce – even stop -their daily intake of insulin, but this must be monitored by a trained professional. Soluble fibre also binds with cholesterol in food and helps in it’s elimination from the system. It is therefore thought to reduce the risk of heart attack and to cut down the likelihood of gallstones. Excluding meat, almost any food which has not been processed or refined should provide enough fibre for most people’s needs. However, if desired, fibre in the form of bran, hi bran biscuits, breakfast cereals supplements etc can be obtained from health food stores and be taken to ensure enough fibre in the diet.

Ideal Fibre Intake

The average adult should aim to have a total daily intake of about 30gm. This could be made up of the following on an average day for example;

Bowl of muesli or wholegrain cereal – 3.5gm

Slice of wholegrain toast – 2.5gm

wholemeal sandwich – 5gm

2 pieces of fruit – 4gm or handful of nuts – 2gm

1 Serve of wholemeal pasta, lentils, beans, peas or jacket potatoes – 7gm

5 Serves of vegetables – 20gm total; around 5 gm each.

Fruit salad – 4gm

By eating a well balanced and fresh food diet, you will be ensuring enough of this valuable aspect of food. If you are unsure then visit your health food store for some supplement options.

Have a great day!

Craig Hitchens. B.HSc.