Fiber

So I was talking a few posts ago about the importance of eating your fruits and veggies. I want to add to that. I think I should have emphasized the importance of fiber instead. Did you know that everyone should have an average of 30-40 grams of fiber every day. That's a lot of fiber! Most people only consume around 8-12 grams each day. So as you can see, there is quite a gap. I wanted to provide a link I found on different ways to get fiber and how much fiber some food actually has. If you can try to consume your fiber via food, rather then fiber supplements, that would be the best option. Besides fruits and veggies, some other fiber sources are whole grains, beans and nuts.

There are two types of fiber, soluble and insoluble. I found this website that gives a pretty good breakdown of the two and here's what they said: "Soluble fiber is found in dried beans, peas, oats and oat bran, flaxseed and psyllium husks. It's also found in fruits such as oranges and apples and vegetables like carrots. Soluble fiber binds with fatty acids in your stomach and prolongs digestion time. This helps to regulate blood sugar. Studies also show that soluble fiber can help reduce your overall cholesterol count. But what's even more important, soluble fiber lowers your LDL, which is considered to be bad cholesterol.
Insoluble fiber is found in whole wheat, wheat bran, vegetables such as cauliflower and green beans and the skins of fruits and root vegetables. Insoluble fiber helps remove toxins from your colon and balance intestine acidity. It also helps move waste through your intestines and bowel."

As you can see, fiber is some pretty important stuff. Here is the link that I mentioned earlier. At the bottom of the chart it has links for other charts, check those out too.

http://commonsensehealth.com/Diet-and-Nutrition/List_of_High_Fiber_Foods.shtml