Weight Loss – Tips – Eat Fiber
fruits and veggies
Lose weight, lower cholesterol.
Doctors have recommended including 25-30 milligrams of fiber in your diet every day for a very long time. This habit contributes to bowel regularity and prevention of diverticulosis. It is also a means of losing weight and curbing high cholesterol, diabetes and other chronic diseases.
Fiber works because you don’t digest it. Rather than entering the blood stream, insoluble fiber (found in leafy greens, seeds, and nuts) moves bulk through the intestines. On the other hand, soluble fiber (found in fruits, oats and beans) binds with fatty acids and prolongs stomach emptying so that sugar is released and absorbed more slowly – a benefit to anyone who wants to manage their blood sugar more effectively. Soluble fiber also lowers total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol, and in so doing, reduces the risk of heart disease.
If you eat a more fibrous diet, you eat less calories because you feel full with less volume, and you also absorb fewer calories. Win-win.
There are some dietary supplements that provide fiber, and many new packaged foods are now including fiber. However, a key advantage of fiber is the phytonutrients, the vitamins and minerals found in fruits and vegetables. So, chose fresh fruits and vegetables for the healthiest benefit.
Try mixing a psyllium (soluble fiber) in a glass of water before dinner. Then focus on these high-fiber foods.
| Fruits | Serving size | Total fiber (grams)* |
| Raspberries | 1 cup | 8.0 |
| Pear, with skin | 1 medium | 5.1 |
| Apple, with skin | 1 medium | 4.4 |
| Figs, dried | 2 medium | 3.7 |
| Blueberries | 1 cup | 3.5 |
| Strawberries | 1 cup | 3.3 |
| Banana | 1 medium | 3.1 |
| Orange | 1 medium | 3.1 |
| Raisins | 1.5-ounce box | 1.6 |
| Grains, cereal & pasta | Serving size | Total fiber (grams)* |
| Spaghetti, whole-wheat, cooked | 1 cup | 6.3 |
| Barley, pearled, cooked | 1 cup | 6.0 |
| Oat bran muffin | 1 medium | 5.2 |
| Bran flakes | 3/4 cup | 5.1 |
| Oatmeal, quick, regular or instant, cooked | 1 cup | 4.0 |
| Popcorn, air-popped | 3 cups | 3.6 |
| Brown rice, cooked | 1 cup | 3.5 |
| Bread, rye | 1 slice | 1.9 |
| Bread, whole-wheat or multigrain | 1 slice | 1.9 |
| Legumes, nuts & seeds | Serving size | Total fiber (grams)* |
| Split peas, cooked | 1 cup | 16.3 |
| Lentils, cooked | 1 cup | 15.6 |
| Black beans, cooked | 1 cup | 15.0 |
| Lima beans, cooked | 1 cup | 13.2 |
| Baked beans, vegetarian, canned, cooked | 1 cup | 10.4 |
| Sunflower seeds, hulled | 1/4 cup | 3.6 |
| Almonds | 1 ounce (22 nuts) | 3.3 |
| Pistachio nuts | 1 ounce (49 nuts) | 2.9 |
| Pecans | 1 ounce (19 halves) | 2.7 |
| Vegetables | Serving size | Total fiber (grams)* |
| Artichoke, cooked | 1 medium | 10.3 |
| Peas, cooked | 1 cup | 8.8 |
| Broccoli, boiled | 1 cup | 5.1 |
| Turnip greens, boiled | 1 cup | 5.0 |
| Sweet corn, cooked | 1 cup | 4.6 |
| Brussels sprouts, cooked | 1 cup | 4.1 |
| Potato, with skin, baked | 1 medium | 4.0 |
| Tomato paste | 1/4 cup | 2.7 |
| Carrot, raw | 1 medium | 1.7 |
Here’s info about a fiber diet from another post.
