The importance of fiber to your diet

[James Marusek 5,244]

I read an interesting article on Fiber today and I am still trying to absorb it. Some of the key points are:

It is important to consume a minimum of 25-30 grams of fiber per day. It should be a natural fiber from real plant food rather than processed or refined fiber produced industrially like inulin powder. We have a massive microbe community that live mainly in our lower intestines (colon). These microbes line the wall of our gut and their numbers reach generally 100 trillion microbes. These microbes digest high fiber foods (that we cannot) and extract the key nutrients. Humans produce around 17 digestive enzymes while microbes have thousands. These microbes (mainly bacteria but also viruses and fungi) have co-evolved with us and produce many of our Vitamins, hormones and chemicals. They are also key to regulating our immune systems, weight and mood.

Here is a link to the article. Beans, Chickpeas, Lima Beans, Split Peas, Lentils, Nuts, Flax Seeds, Chia Seeds and Quinoa.]

[BettyG 75]

Great reminder about the importance of fiber! It is being called a "pre-biotic" and should be used along with pro-biotics. I had GI issues for many years due to frequent antibiotics. Probiotics and Fiber helped heal my gut.

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