The Missing Link For Weight Control and Preventive Health in Your Diet

Fiber is vitally important to the diet and to overall health but the fact is most of us don’t get enough of it. I never really thought much about fiber myself, I started to get more and more fiber with small changes in my diet that I made along the way by including raw vegetables and fruits.

What I’ve noticed is that when I’m getting plenty of fiber in my diet through whole grain bread and raw greens, various fruits, carrots, and even peanut butter, I feel much more energetic, quicker, more flexible and relaxed. There have been times when I went 2 or 3 days without getting much fiber and I started to notice decreased motivation, more rigidity in my body, and less energy.

Fiber is a special type of carbohydrate that passes through the human digestive system virtually unchanged, without being broken down into nutrients. When we’re getting enough fiber, it’s like we’re sending a brush through our digestive organs which scrubs off the particles hanging around or moving slowly through our bodies. Just as we brush our teeth, fiber brushes our insides. I can feel an immediate difference when I’m getting enough fiber.

Getting enough fiber can prevent constipation, decrease the likelihood of serious illness and disease, increase energy and motivation, and help you regulate your weight.

Facts about fiber

•Fiber keeps stool soft and keeps the contents of the intestines moving.

•Americans consume only about 10% of the fiber that they did 100 years ago.

•A good diet should contain approximately 25 to 30 grams of fiber a day. The average American eats less than half of that.

•The change in the way wheat was processed into flour at the turn of the century-from a crushing to a finer rolling process – accounts substantially for the depletion in dietary fiber.

•Bran has the highest fiber content – about 25% to 45%.

Sources of fiber:

•All-natural cereals

•Whole-grain breads

•Beans

•Fruits

•Vegetables

•Nuts

One of the easiest high-fiber snacks you can eat is raw carrots and celery dipped in peanut butter. Make it a point to increase your fiber intake and notice how much better you feel and how much easier it is to regulate your appetite.

Thanks to eHealthMD for their valuable resources on fiber and weight loss.

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