Posted on March 05, 2014 by Jenny Cromack

Dietry fibre is all over the media as a great tool for fat loss… for once the media aren’t swinging out of their trees! Fibre does really help fat loss, no it’s not a magical pill but it certainly is in the bag of tricks for optimising fat loss. If you’re overweight consuming food groups high in fibre is a great strategy for fat loss. Guess what though, shock horror these are generally unprocessed vegetables, nuts, and pulses, the stuff you should be consuming on a daily basis anyway. I guess that poses the question…..are you getting enough fibre? Especially enough fibre to be effective for fat loss.

Fibre is such an excellent tool for fat loss because it helps to control hunger. If you eat from the land and avoid man made products you will reduce the amount of food cravings you experience because your body is in a better hormonal state. Eating high fibre foods makes you feel full so you can resist eating more than you need, this is especially helpful if you have the will power of a dog in a butchers shop!

What Is Fibre and Why Is It So Good?

Fibre is actually a carbohydrate, however fear not, you can’t digest or absorb it. By definition it is an indigestible carbohydrate. But, although we can’t digest fibre it plays a critical role in our bodies, including:

• promoting good probiotic bacteria in the stomach
• increases the immune system of the gut
• keeps the digestive lining healthy
• can help remove toxins from the body
• it reduces the rate of sucrose into the blood stream
• lowers bad LDL cholesterol
• has been shown to reduce the risk of certain cancers

Where Should You Get Fibre?

Well, according to many cereals, grains and “wholemeal” bread are great sources of fibre…… if you believe that you’re mad. Grains obviously have fibre , a slice of white bread has around 0.8 grams and whole wheat packs a whopping 2 grams. However compare that to some navy beans which have 17 grams or a small portion of raspberries packing 8 grams, it becomes clear that there are much better options that cereals and grains. Here are some of the best sources of dietary fibre:

• Broccoli
• Lettuce…bet you wouldn’t have thought that?!
• Cabbage
• Green Beans
• Onions
• Mushrooms

If you notice there is a pattern forming above, there is no cereals, no wholegrain bread or any other crazy product in the latest diet craze. So…are you getting enough fibre? If not, try and increase your daily fibre for 10 days and I promise you’ll feel so much fuller.

Chris