Health Basics with Diana Bomford of Active Nutrition

Our fore-fathers ate a diet high in fibre.

They had fewer incidents of obesity, diabetes and cancer. Why are we now suffering these debilitating and often fatal diseases at increasingly high rates? One answer may lie in the amount of fibre we are (not) consuming.

Current research supports the importance of fibre in our diets, with men requiring a minimum of 30 grams per day and women 25 grams per day, according to Ministry of Health guidelines. However, surveys show the average New Zealander is only consuming about half their daily requirement. To find out where we are going so wrong, we need to compare our food intake to people in countries with low incidence of bowel and breast cancer, obesity and diabetes eat; to look at our highly processed Westernised diet and identify what changes we can make to improve our chances of living a disease-free life.

Fibre comes in two forms, soluble which dissolves in water to form a gel-like material; and insoluble, which was formerly referred to as roughage and does not dissolve.

Insoluble fibre is fibre that cannot be digested and will pass through your gut without being broken down. Its function is to assist food to move more easily through your gut, keeping your bowels healthy, preventing constipation, haemorrhoids and bowel cancer. Research has linked breast cancer with a lack of insoluble fibre through the increased levels of oestrogen resulting from constipation.

Soluble fibre is broken down and digested through the intestine. Though fibre does not contain nutrients, it is credited with lowering blood cholesterol and thus heart disease; slowing absorption of sugar; assisting with weigh loss through bulking up food so you stay fuller for longer; as well as reducing stress by controlling the yo-yo effect of blood sugars that cause the brain to release the stress hormone, adrenaline which acts on releasing the body's energy stores.

Fibre is only found in plant based foods. All foods containing fibre have both types of fibre, but in varying quantities. Good sources of insoluble fibre are whole grains and unpeeled fruit and vegetables; whilst rich sources of soluble fibre are found in fruits, grains and vegetables such as apples, citrus, pears, barley, oats and legumes. Food labelling guidelines suggest that anything labelled a source should contain 3 grams of fibre per 100 grams.

For further information, please email me: info@activenutrition.co.nz