Why is Fibre so important?

I have talked about different types of fibre and prebiotics before – click here to read my previous article.

Most people will say “Of course fibre is important, we all know that.  It helps make you poo.”.  Well yes it does help you to pass bowel motions easier, but helping in the formation of your poo and supporting good gut microbiome is not where fibre stops. There are many people adopting low fibre diets in various formats eg Low FODMAP, Keto and the more extreme end of no fibre diet – the Carnivore diet. – Click here to check out the Carnivore diet

While others are not specifically seeking our low fibre diets but are mainly eating processed/packaged foods which are nearly void of fibre.

Yes the low FODMAP diet and some other low fibre diets can help people that are having issues with their bodies fermenting fibres or have conditions like SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth) or candida (yeast overgrowth).  But these diet strategies should only be short term while addressing the cause of these conditions.  I work with these conditions regularly in my clinic and emphasise to my clients that these diet strategies are only short term, while we get on top of the issues.

None of the abovementioned diets should be stayed on long term.  Eg around 3 to 6 months of reduced or no fibre in the diet will start to impact your gut flora (good bacteria in your bowel).

Reasons why we need fibre in our diet:

1. To bulk up and help push out our stools.  But also feed our good bugs.  If we are not eating fibre the bad bacteria will flourish and many of these create inflammation in our gut and then for the rest of our body.  Therefore, we need fibre to help reduce inflammation. 

2.   To help carry toxins from our body.  But not just toxins, we also need adequate fibre for the body to remove excess hormones eg estrogen (rather than cycling it back into the body, which can be a cause of oestrogen dominance).  Fibre is also important for the body to eliminate excess cholesterol that the body isn’t using (remember not all cholesterol is bad – we don’t want to get rid of all of it from our body).

3.  Major nutrient deficiencies.  There is no fibre in meat only plants.  So if you have cut out your fibre dramatically it means you have also cut plant foods from your diet.  We get many nutrients from plants that we don’t get from meat.  For example, humans, guinea pigs, other primates, fruit bats, capybara and some reptiles are the only ones in the animal kingdom that do not make our own vitamin C.  It is crucial for us to eat plant foods to obtain vitamin C.

4.   Fibre helps us to feel fuller for longer.  This can help prevent from overeating and gaining wait or help in the reduction in weight or weight management.

5.    Fibre can help lower blood pressure and help control blood sugar levels (reducing insulin sensitivity).

6.     Bad bacteria in our gut can influence how we think and feel, influencing our moods.

7.     A large part of our immune system is in our gut – 70-80%!!!  We need to feed fibrous foods to those bacteria that keep our gut immune cells functioning optimally.

Many people claim how amazing they feel cutting fibre from their diet and there are many stories of keto and carnivore success stories.  But as these types of lifestyles are still fairly new in the scheme of things, I feel long term, their benefits felt/achieved initially won’t be long term achievements. If you have been avoiding fibre as you feel better or have been on the low FODMAP diet for years and still not feeling at your optimal, book in with me to discuss how we can bring fibre back into your diet or see why low FODMAP may not be working for you. 

Contact me to book in a consult.

  30/12/2023     Articles     0 Comment(s)