Table of contents:
- Fiber is important for digestive health
- How can fiber consumption help you lose weight?
- What about the consumption of fiber supplements?
If you want to lose weight in a healthy way, eating lots of vegetables and fruits can help. This is because of the high fiber content in both types of food. Yes, consumption of fiber is believed to help you lose weight.
A study has also proven this. Research published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine has shown that consuming 30 grams of fiber per day can help you lose weight, lower blood pressure, and improve the body's response to insulin.
Fiber is important for digestive health
You can get fiber from eating vegetables, fruits, and whole grains. In the body, fiber is not digested like carbohydrates, fats, or proteins that enter the body. Fiber just passes through your body without causing a rise in blood sugar.
However, fiber brings many benefits in your digestive system. Fiber can help feed the good bacteria in the gut so they can improve your digestive health. In addition, the form of fiber that tends to be intact once it reaches the intestines can help with bowel movements, making it easier for you to pass stool.
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 up the space in your stomach, thereby stimulating receptors in the body that make the brain think that you are full and should stop eating. In addition, fiber can slow down gastric emptying and digestion, so you will feel fuller for longer.
In turn, this makes you feel less hungry and reduces your appetite, so you will eat less. In this way, fiber can slowly help you lose weight.
Choose a water soluble fiber type. Soluble fiber will absorb water and form a kind of gel in the intestines. This gel then slows down gastric emptying, so you are full longer and have less appetite.
This gel can also slow down the absorption of sugar into the bloodstream. So that blood sugar levels will be low followed by low insulin levels too. This means that the body is less likely to store fat.
Research has also proven that the weight loss effects of fiber target belly fat specifically. This belly fat is dangerous and has been linked to metabolic diseases.
What about the consumption of fiber supplements?
Fiber supplements are usually made by isolating fiber from plants. According to some studies, not all types of fiber supplements can help you lose weight. Fiber supplements from glucomannan (fiber extracted from konjac root) have been shown to promote weight loss. Meanwhile, psyllium and guar gum types of fiber are not able to help you lose weight.
However, you should still try to get fiber from food, not from supplements. You certainly cannot get the same benefits or effects from consuming natural fiber that comes from food with those obtained from supplements. When you eat vegetables and fruit, you get not only fiber but also other nutrients that can provide other health benefits.
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