"Let food be your medicine." – Hippocrates

At last, we are learning that fiber is more than roughage. The Food and Drug Administration has approved many health claims related to fiber, including lowered risk of heart disease and cancer. And that’s just the beginning; ongoing research is discovering more and more benefits to eating fiber that involve the valuable nutrients contained in whole grain fiber. And there’s one effect of fiber that is hard to quantify—the joy of fiber that comes from feeling healthy.

Fiber is all around us, in fruits and vegetables, in whole grains, breads and cereals, and in beans and other legumes—still, many people have trouble getting even minimal amounts of fiber in their diets. According to the American Dietetic Association, the typical American eats only about 11 grams of fiber per day, less than half the recommended amount.   

Fiber: The Hardest Working Food in Your Diet. Ongoing research is discovering more and more benefits of eating fiber.

In the quest for convenient fiber, many of us have turned to supplements and fiber powders and pills. For some people, these supplements are the main source of fiber in their diets. Unfortunately, processed forms of fiber are missing many of the nutrients that natural fiber contains: they’ve been removed during processing and not replaced. After all, fiber is more than roughage. Different fiber-rich foods contain different kinds of fiber. Eating a balanced diet with fruits, vegetables and grains is the only way to get the complete benefits of fiber.

So how do we get more healthy fiber into our diets? Fortunately, we’re seeing more items at the grocery store with their natural fiber intact and unprocessed. And most packaged foods list fiber content per serving on their nutritional panels, making it easier to choose foods high in fiber. The most important step is educating yourself about the foods you eat so you can make the often small changes in your diet that add up to feeling better and living longer.