Fiber intake and conversations are important at younger ages too! It’s not just for your grandparent’s old faithful prune juice. Having a healthy gut is incredibly important for your overall health and well being from head to toe. Included in that though is having regular bowel movements. If you’ve ever been constipated before you know how important that can be! While regular and adequate intake is important, there are times which having too much could actually cause more problems than good.
What is fiber and its benefits
The most popular impact of fiber is its ability to help ensure regular bowel movements. There are two main types of fiber; soluble and insoluble. Soluble fiber helps to absorb water to soften the stool and make it easier to pass. Insoluble fiber provides bulk and speeds up how quickly it passes through you. Regardless the type, the result is having an easier time going which always feels better compared to constipation.
Fiber is also able to help feed the good bacteria in your gut to keep that healthy. A healthy gut allows for optimal nutrient absorption while keeping out any potential contaminants. In short, it’s a pretty big deal. Absorbing nutrients into the body properly ensures that every part of the body needing to use those are able to acquire them. If those nutrients aren’t available, inflammation can begin building and cause some major problems.
How much do you need to be having
Consuming fiber is important for everyone at every level of physical activity and age. In general men should aim for 38 grams per day while women should aim for 25 grams per day. Great sources of fiber include fruits, vegetables, oats, nuts, seeds, whole grains and beans. If you take the time to evaluate your daily intake and realize you need to increase things a tad, do so gradually.
Adding in too much too quickly can have the opposite effect. It can cause constipation and a lot of stomach discomfort. The best strategy is to gradually add in those higher fiber items while also making sure to drink plenty of water. Maintaining proper hydration will help to ensure the water that gets pulled in isn’t dehydrating.
When not to be having fiber
Everything has its own time and place. For fiber, the time and place to AVOID it would be immediately before exercise and competitions. Digesting fiber takes a long time and when training your body is focused on other things. While busy elsewhere and unable to concentrate on digestion, that food just sits there. This results in some gas building and that cinderblock type feeling in the gut to arise. Not a fun time by any stretch of the imagination!
Away from physical activity though fiber is a great thing to have incorporated. They body will have that additional time to digest it and no worries of discomfort. Low fiber foods are much easier on the stomach pre-workout and why going for things such as liquid sports drinks or applesauce would be better than whole apples or a smoothie with veggies and seeds in it. Those are all great things to be having but the time and place of them matter. Stay mindful of your intake and make sure it’s working in a beneficial manner for you.
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