Nutrition

Foods High In Fiber For Weight Loss And More

June 7, 2009
By J White

Foods high in fiber are important in weight loss as well as for your overall health. In addition to helping to reduce risk of certain diseases, they also help to control insulin levels in your body. When insulin levels are high, your body is in a fat storing mode instead of fat burning one.

Your insulin levels could easily become more manageable if you consumed enough fiber each day. However, in the United States, less than half gets the recommended amount of the nutrient in their diet. Studies have shown that those with higher fiber intake have a lower risk to heart diseases, diabetes, and high blood pressure.

How Much Fiber?

Regardless of whether or not you consume the proper amount of calories each day, most of your already have a working knowledge of how much you should consume. However, very few of you have any notion of how much fiber you should have in your daily diet.

Current recommendations take into account age, gender, and the amount of energy you consume each day. The recommended amount is 14 grams per 1000 Calories. For women on a 2000 Calorie diet, this comes out to 28 grams. For men eating 2600, they need 36 grams a day.

Processed Foods

Processed foods are the antitheses of fiber-intake. This is because during the milling process for the production of the flour used to bake these goods, the fiber and other nutrients are stripped away. Later in the production, nutrients such as vitamins and minerals are added back. However, no fiber is reincorporated.

In fact, this modern process of food production has been linked with the widening of waistlines that is prevalent in most industrial societies the world over. To counter this, you need to consume foods high in fiber.

Foods High In Fiber

Foods that are high in fiber come from mostly natural foods such as whole fruits and vegetables. For instance, eating an average size apple of about 7 ounces with its skin provides around 4.5 grams of fiber alone. Eating two or three of these a day can provide a significant portion of your fiber needs, and yes, it will keep the doctor away.

Other foods high in fiber include:

1/2 Cup of Navy Beans: 9.5 grams
1/2 Cup of Kidney Beans: 8.2 grams
1/2 Cup of Pinto Beans: 7.7 grams
1/2 Cup of Black Beans: 7.5 grams
1/2 Cup of Lima Beans: 6.6 grams
1/2 Cup of Raspberries: 4 grams
1/2 Cup of Spinach: 3.5 grams
Two slices of Whole Wheat Bread (2 ounces): 4 grams
Large Orange (6.5 ounces): 4.4 grams

Start Slowly

One last bit of advice. If you are not use to eating a lot of foods high in fiber, start slowly. Initially you may notice some bloating, cramping, or gas. By starting slowing, you can lessen these physical reactions. Also it is very important to drink at least 8 glasses of water a day, as water helps to digest the fiber.

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