Why fiber is my friend

I’m fired up about fiber right now, so how about a fiber focus.

What is the big deal with fiber, you ask? Well, for one, if I’m seeking foods with fiber, I’m usually in the realm of “off-white” foods, and therefore don’t have to worry as much about the junk like HFCS, hydrogenated oils and my nemesis: refined sugar. There just isn’t a lot of foods that mix fiber and junk: it’s a conflict of interest.

Also, fiber makes me feel full and helps me digest and keep things a movin’. Fiber is also like the “junk magnet” in the body: it can carry out toxins, poor quality nutrients and other “stuff” we don’t really want getting into our bodies and hanging out for too long. Eating fiber speeds up the elimination process, so our food isn’t lingering in the gut.

In an ideal world we would get like 35 grams of fiber/day, which is much MORE than what the average US adult gets (10-15g/day is typical).

So, let’s aim to boost our fiber. Research shows that just 5g/meal of fiber can help balance blood sugar, which is a major player in weight gain/loss + diabetes, etc. 5g of fiber is about 1 apple.

Here are some tips for getting in your fiber:

• have at least 5 servings of fruit/veggies per day. Berries, apples, kiwis, sweet potatoes, and broccoli are examples of foods with at least 4g of fiber per serving.
• Eat breads or crackers with AT MINIMUM 3g of fiber per serving. Watch the HFCS too. You’re basically left with either fresh, local whole grain breads, or breads like Ezekiel.
• Get some beans in your diet. A cup of black beans has about 20G of fiber per serving. Garbanzo beans and lentils are high in fiber too.
• Eat cereals with at least 5g of fiber and less than 10g of sugar. Again, you’re limited to things like Puffins, Kashi, All-bran, and stuff that doesn’t have a cartoon character on the label.
• Even random things like Molasses, soy milk, almonds, dates, chocolate (YES! A good piece of chocolate has 2-4g of fiber/serving) are sources of fiber.

Recipe: Fiber-fest oatmeal

1/4 cup whole oats
1/2 cup hot water
1 tbsp chopped almonds
1 tbsp blackstrap molasses
cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, to taste
1/2 small apple, finely chopped
1 tbsp flaxmeal, ground

Cook the oats on the stove on low-med heat, stirring frequently. Add the apples, almonds, spices, and molasses in at the end and cook for about 1 more minute, covered. Add flaxmeal in just before serving. You don’t want to heat flaxmeal too much.

Serves 1, but it’s a hearty serving. Should keep ya full for while.

Happy eating and happy digesting!