Facts aboutÉ
FIBRE Hit your daily fibre intake and boost your health with these tips
D
espite it being an essential nutrient, did you know that many of us aren’t getting enough fibre in our diets? The recommended daily intake of fibre for adults is 30g a day, but according to the British Nutrition Foundation, many Brits are consuming much less than this – with women averaging a mere 17.2g a day*. Never fear, as with just a few tweaks to your meals and snacks, you can boost your fibre intake and feel better for it.
WHY IS FIBRE SO IMPORTANT?
‘Dietary fibre is the part of carbohydraterich foods indigestible by our digestive enzymes,’ explains nutritional therapist Natalie Lamb. ‘It’s found naturally in all fruit and vegetables, as well as in the cell walls of wholegrains such as oats, beans, nuts and seeds.’ Eating a diet high in fibre aids healthy bowel movements by adding bulk to stools, but it also feeds the good bacteria in your colon and keeps you feeling full after eating. So get stuck in!
Did you know?
There are two different types of fibre found in food: soluble and insoluble. Soluble fibre – which is in fruit, vegetables, oats and pulses – turns into a gel-like substance during digestion and can slow down the emptying of the stomach, making us feel fuller. It’s also been shown to help stabilise blood pressure and blood-sugar levels. Insoluble fibre can be found in wholegrain breads and cereals, nuts and seeds, as well as fruit and vegetables and adds bulk to the stool, helping it move through the bowel.
Fresh fruit is a great source of fibre
Baked beans are packed with fibre
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UP YOUR INTAKE
Increasing your daily fibre intake is easy with these meal and snack ideas from dietician Hala El-Shafie. BREAKFAST: 2 slices of wholemeal toast (4g) with 1 anana (1.4g) = 5g fibre you have toast for breakfast, opt r wholemeal bread as it contains ore than double the fibre per ce, so is an easy way to boost ur fibre intake. A serving of orridge contains around 3g of bre and is a great vehicle for ding extra dried or fresh fruits, ts and seeds to bump up the re content even more. MID-MORNING SNACK: A handful 8g) of almonds = 4g fibre monds are an easy snack to keep u going through the morning as ll as increasing your fibre intake. other bonus is that they have a g shelf life, so you can keep them a pot in your desk drawer or
