– A new year is a good time to reflect on your life and make resolutions for yourself. Many New Year’s resolutions fail to meet their goals and end up lasting only two or three weeks. It’s simple to stick to, and it can make a significant difference in your overall wellness and health: Eat more fiber.
In 2019, fiber can help you reach your health and wellness goals. Fiber is most well-known for its ability keep your digestive system healthy, but it also has other benefits like helping to promote a feeling satiation.
The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES 2015-2016) found that nine out of ten Americans are not getting sufficient fiber in their daily diets despite its well-known health benefits. Lauren Harris-Pincus MS RDN believes that she knows the reason.
“Fiber can be confusing,” Harris-Pincus explains. “I think many people have experienced tummy trouble when they ate too much fiber and it overwhelmed their digestive system. With a simple strategy of introducing fiber slowly, they can receive all the health benefits without any discomfort.”
According to the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, women should consume 25 grams and men 38 grams of fiber daily. However, most people only consume 15 grams. Harris-Pincus offers some helpful tips to help you stick with your resolution of 25-38 grams per day.
* Only increase your fiber intake by three to five grams each day. You give your body time for adjustment.
* Mix in high-fiber foods with your regular diet. You can increase your fiber intake by adding fiber to the foods you already consume. This could be as easy as adding high-fiber cereals to yogurt parfaits or adding nuts and fruits to salads.
* Drink more water. Insoluble fiber is not soluble in water. Therefore, make sure to drink lots of fluids. You can help your digestive system work more efficiently by eating more fiber and drinking more fluids.
* Find a great-tasting fiber you love. You should stop viewing fiber as a chore or something you have to do. “have to”Find a high-fiber food that you enjoy eating.
“I think everyone has this idea of fiber as bland and boring,”Harris-Pincus said. “But what people don’t realize is that there are tons of great-tasting, high-fiber foods. The easiest place to start is with your morning cereal.”
Fiber OneA new cereal with high fiber was introduced recently that doesn’t even taste like a cereal. Fiber One Strawberries & Vanilla Clusters is made from real strawberries and sweet vanilla clusters. It still provides 35 percent of your Daily Value of fiber per cup. Fiber is something you will enjoy eating.
Fiber One Original Bran contains 55 percent and Fiber One Honey Clusters 40 percent of the Daily Value of fiber.
Harris-Pincus suggests eating whole fruits and vegetables instead of cereal. You can also get fiber from beans and legumes, so make sure to include black beans in your fajitas. For quick snacks, popcorn is another good option. Just three cups of popcorn provides four grams of fiber.
“Fiber really is overlooked, which is a shame because it can be this great-tasting, powerhouse nutrient,” Harris-Pincus explains. “New Year’s resolutions are usually all about cutting calories or increasing protein, when in reality fiber can do all these amazing things for your body. You just have to start eating more of it to realize the benefits.”
