Fiber is essential in maintaining a not only a healthy lifestyle but a healthy weight, too! It adds bulk to help you feel full without boosting your blood sugar or adding calories. Pretty great, right? Yet most of us don’t get enough of it through our daily food intake. Whether its for weight loss or overall health, you may want to consider adding these 5 high-fiber foods to your plate!
Why Focus on Fiber?
Dietary fiber is a critical component to good health for several reasons. High-fiber foods keep you regular, support a healthy & balanced gut, helps absorb toxins, and helps maintain healthy cholesterol and blood sugar levels. Of course, there are supplements to help, but it’s generally best to increase fiber intake through whole plant foods such as vegetables, beans, fruit, whole grains, and nuts.
As a general rule of thumb, the average adult is only eating 15 grams of fiber per day when the daily intake is 25 grams for women and 38 grams for men.
Consuming more of the five high-fiber foods listed below will help you keep a fiber-balanced diet to keep you feeling fuller for longer & keep your digestive system happy!
Pears
Pears are both delicious and nutritious, and one of the high-fiber foods that provide a vitamin boost, too. Pears are known to promote weight loss, improve digestion, and boost your immunity. One medium-sized pear contains 5.5 grams of fiber, putting pears near the top as one of the better fruit sources of fiber. Pair it with almond butter for a snack or add it to a salad for a healthy meal.
Strawberries
Strawberries, which are a much healthier alternative to sweet junk foods, are rich in fiber and loaded with vitamin C, manganese, and many powerful antioxidants. There are 3 grams of fiber in one cup of strawberries, which is a surprisingly good amount with the low-calorie count. Strawberries contain both types of fiber. About 60 percent of the total fiber is the insoluble type and the remaining 40 percent is soluble fiber.
Avocados
Avocados are loaded with healthy fats and contain very high levels of Vitamin C, Vitamin E, potassium, magnesium, and various B Vitamins. There are 10 grams of fiber in one cup of avocados. Spread it on toast, put it on your salad, or slice it to put on a sandwich to add a bit of fiber and healthy fats to your diet.
Artichokes
Artichokes are high in many nutrients and one of the world’s best sources of fiber, specifically dietary fiber. There are 10.3 grams of fiber in one artichoke. An artichoke also provides high levels of several other important nutrients. By adding canned or frozen artichokes to a salad or adding it to pasta, it can make a great fiber-rich meal.
Lentils
Lentils protect your digestive system because of the rich amount of dietary fiber and contribute to heart health in their soluble fiber and the significant amounts of folate and magnesium, which makes lentils a very good source of cholesterol-lowering fiber. Along with helping to lower cholesterol, they have special benefits in managing blood-sugar disorders since their high fiber content prevents blood sugar levels from rising rapidly after a meal. One cup of cooked lentils has 15.6 grams of fiber.
A healthy diet consists of natural foods, fiber-rich food, vitamin-rich foods, and protein-rich food. With all the delicious food options that are rich in fiber, adding the nutrient to your diet is easy and fun!
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