Fiber is a group of non-digestible carbohydrates and is associated with plant foods (whole grains, fruits, vegetables) that our bodies cannot easily digest or break down. It is a vital part of a healthy diet and helps reduce your risk of chronic diseases, ensures better gut health, and eases bowel movements.
Health experts have recommended eating 38 and 25 grams of fiber per day for men and women, respectively. However, switch slowly to a high-fiber diet, as abruptly increasing fiber intake may cause constipation, uneasiness, bloating, and cramping.
Here are some reasons why you should incorporate high-fiber foods into your daily diet.
Ensures Better Heart Health
A high-fiber meal prevents blood sugar levels from rising rapidly, thereby controlling glucose and insulin levels. Moreover, having soluble beta-glucan fiber foods like organic and gluten-free oats regularly, which are also rich sources of antioxidants, can help lower cholesterol and high blood pressure.
Since soluble fiber is known to lower your blood cholesterol by binding to bile and removing it from your body, a fiber-rich diet should be eaten daily to reduce the risk of heart diseases.
Improves gut health
Increasing the quantity of fiber or roughage in your diet can help you get relief from constipation. Fiber works by pulling water into the large intestine. This helps regulate smooth bowel movements and helps prevent certain bowel cancers as well.
Therefore, foods that are rich in soluble and dietary fiber serve as a boon for your gut and the arteries.
Enhances Energy
Starting each day with a fiber-rich breakfast is the best practice to maintain overall health. Such a meal loaded with a plethora of vital nutrients and adequate soluble fiber can provide you enough energy to function tirelessly throughout the day. Fiber provides you lots of energy and makes you feel full for longer by providing you enough carbohydrates but not too many calories.
Helps to lose weight
Gradually increasing your fiber intake can do wonders for people struggling to lose weight. A high-fiber diet makes you feel fuller for longer, hence preventing overeating by keeping hunger pangs at bay. By staying satisfied for longer, you’re likely to eat less, meaning you’ll consume fewer calories for the same volume of food. This will, thus, help to reduce weight.
Better skin health
Eating more fiber can help flush toxins out of your body, thus preventing acne breakout and improving your skin’s health and texture. The masks made of beta-glucan rich oats may help to heal wounds and chapped or inflamed skin. They also serve as anti-itching agents.
Conclusion
Switching to a high-fiber diet may affect the absorption and effectiveness of your pre-existing medications. So, it is recommended to consult with your doctor before increasing the amount of fiber intake. Also, if you’re eating a high-fiber diet, drink around eight glasses of fluid daily.
Therefore, having a healthy meal full of diverse nutrients and enough fiber is the best way to ensure optimal physical and mental health.
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