Contents:
- Medical Video: Optimize Your Fiber Intake
- Fiber is important for digestive health
- How can fiber consumption help you lose weight?
- What about consuming fiber supplements?
Medical Video: Optimize Your Fiber Intake
If you want to lose weight in a healthy way, consuming lots of vegetables and fruit can help. This is because the fiber content is high in both types of food. Yes, consumption of fiber is believed to help you lose weight.
A study has also proven this. Research published by the Annals of Internal Medicine journal proves that consumption of fiber as much as 30 grams per day can help reduce weight, lower blood pressure, and improve the body's response to insulin.
Fiber is important for digestive health
You can get fiber from the consumption of vegetables, fruits, and whole grains. In the body, fiber is not digested like carbohydrates, fats, or proteins that enter the body. Fiber passes in your body without causing a rise in blood sugar.
However, fiber carries many benefits in your digestive system. Fiber can help feed good bacteria in the intestines so that it can improve your digestive health. In addition, the form of fibers that tend to be intact after arriving at the intestine can help with bowel movements - making it easier for you to defecate.
How can fiber consumption help you lose weight?
Fiber naturally can help you lose weight. Consuming lots of fiber can help you feel full longer, without having to add a lot of calories to your body.
This is done by fiber by filling the space in your stomach, thereby stimulating the receptors in the body that make the brain think that you are full and must stop eating. In addition, fiber can slow emptying of gastric contents and digestive work, so you will feel full longer.
Furthermore, this makes you not feel hungry again quickly and decreases appetite, so you will eat less. In this way, fiber can slowly help you lose weight.
Choose the type of water soluble fiber. Water soluble fiber will absorb water and form a kind of gel in the intestine. This gel then slows down gastric emptying, so you are full longer and your appetite decreases.
This gel also can slow the absorption of sugar into the bloodstream. So that blood sugar levels will be low followed by low insulin levels too. That is, the body tends not to store fat.
Research has also proven that the weight loss effect of fiber specifically targets abdominal fat. This belly fat is dangerous and is associated with metabolic diseases.
What about consuming fiber supplements?
Fiber supplements are usually made by isolating fibers from plants. According to some studies, not all types of fiber supplements can help you lose weight. Fiber supplements from glucomannan (a fiber extracted from konjac root) have been shown to produce weight loss. Meanwhile, psyllium and guar gum fibers are not able to help you lose weight.
However, you should keep trying to get fiber from food instead of supplements. You certainly can't get the same benefits or effects from consuming natural fibers derived from food with those obtained from supplements. When you eat vegetables and fruit, you not only get fiber but also other nutrients that can provide other health benefits.
