THE FIBER FRAUD

 THE FIBER FRAUD

New research is now showing that your dietary fiber intake might be responsible for everything from anemia and chronic fatigue to serious gastrointestinal complications and even cancer.

Has dietary fibre become a case of too much of a good thing?. It is estimated that on average we consume 15-20 gm a day, and various diet organizations recommend  anything from 20 to 50 gm a day. Fiber has been touted as a cure-all, several diets are based exclusively around high fiber intake, and "Fiber FAQs" from supplement hawkers litter every cranny of the Internet. The American Dietetic Association's 7-page fact sheet too praises the wonders of fiber and sublimely thanks the Kellogg Company's assistance in producing the fact sheet. "Start your day with a high-fiber breakfast cereal," they gleefully declare.

Stop. The US Nationwide Food Consumption Survey reveals that 90 percent of Americans show some symptoms of malnutrition! One almost suspects that the "outbreak" of syndromatic diseases like chronic fatigue and borderline anemia and more pronounced problems like osteoporosis have either increased of late, or have come into the public consciousness along with growing advocacy for the use of fiber at every meal.

The American Academy of Pediatrics frowns upon using dietary fiber for infants less than one year since fiber drastically reduces the bioavailablility of minerals and vitamins. Low fiber diets are also recommended for those between 2- and 20-years. Also for athletes.

The benefits of fiber too are being seriously questioned. The New England Journal of Medicine has published the results of a study showing that dietary fiber provided no protective effect on colorectal cancer or adenoma. In fact, far from providing a defence for cancer, pectin fiber may promote your odds of cancer since it interferes with the body's use of carotene, one of the most important of all antioxidants. We need research here!

Also, a new study at the Department of Health and Behavior Studies at Columbia University declares that women who had the lowest dietary fat-to-fiber ratios had lower calcium absorption values. The study found a link between a high fiber, low-fat diet and low calcium absorption. Higher calcium absorption levels were associated with higher fat, lower fiber diets. The researchers speculate that its not just the fiber that affects calcium absorption, but the fats too may play a significant role.

Think, what does fiber do? It pushes our food out before it has been digested. Nice, if you have high cholesterol or if you want to lose weight or have parasitic or candida infections and want to rejuvenate your intestinal flora. But there is a flip side. Food needs time to be digested, and even more in the intestines to be suitably absorbed into the blood. Carbs too take some time to be properly digested, as do proteins, and of course. fats.

The consequence of high fibre diets is that your tum's contents gets pushed out even as it secretes the required enzymes. So while some energy is expended for digestion, the returns are poor because your digestive system has not been given the requisite time. The result is fatigue and low blood sugar.

Absorption of key nutrients too is severely hampered. Insoluble fibers directly bind certain minerals, including calcium, magnesium, zinc and phosphorous. And they affect absorption of other key nutrients, especially iron. Vegetable fiber phytates and polyphenols directly affect iron absorption. Couple this with the fact that most vegan diets are terribly low in heme iron (that we absorb five times more efficiently than non-heme iron), and you will know why health conscious America boasts a 20 percent incidence of anemia in women and one in four falling prey to the chronic fatigue syndrome.

Fiber affects your energy levels in three ways. First, it can replace other energy and nutrients that you need in your diet. Secondly, by increasing intestinal motility it reduces the amount of nutrients that are actually absorbed. Thirdly, insoluble fiber dramatically retards starch hydrolysis and slow downs glucose intake. This makes it good for diabetics who can avoid spikes in blood sugar, but not so good for those who find themselves short in the energy department by mid-afternoon.

Too much fiber, for some just 50 gm a day, can also cause abdominal discomfort, gas, and diarrhea, and block the gastrointestinal tract. In this condition the fiber, being indigestible, ferments even faster than improperly combined food. And I have had patients who come doubled up in pain, with bran choking their guts. Few have been warned to take plenty of water with bran since it absorbs all the water in the intestines and swells up -  causing not just dehydration but also severe blockage and pain. Too much fiber actually complicates constipation. If fiber was such a simple solution, constipation wouldn't be a billion dollar industry, with so many alternative purgatives, laxatives, mobility stimulants and intestinal irritants.

High fiber diets are not unmitigated goodies. whether fiber can really work for you depends on the condition you suffer from and your existing diet. If you are taking a balanced diet high in natural fiber-rich foods you don't really need any fiber supplements or fortified foods at all.

Make Fiber Count

* Choose a variety of soluble and insoluble fiber-rich food sources: fruits and veggies, nuts and dried fruits, whole grain breads and cereals, and sprouts. If you are a diabetic, use insoluble fiber; if you have a heart condition, use more soluble fiber. If you are constipated, you don't need to use pectins - they will only make it worse. Read about fiber and understand what type works for specific conditions.

* Unless you are severely constipated and dietary alterations haven't benefited, avoid bran supplement altogether. Remember, bran supplements are purified cellulose and not the same as  grain cellulose. Never add them to your food. Use food fibers rather than supplements.

* Make sure you are taking enough fats. For most average consumers fat intake is a problem, but for the health conscious, fat over-consciousness is a problem itself!

* Purchase whole grain breads and cereals rather than refined ones. Similarly, use whole grain flour for batter. It even tastes better.

* Eat fresh foods raw and unpeeled whenever possible. Natural however does not men fiber-rich. Many fruits and veggies are usually low in fiber. And carrot juice is not a fiber-rich source. A small carrot on the other hand can speed up intestinal motility in minutes.

* Use sprouted beans and soy. Try to use sprouts as protein sources instead of meatballs.

* Drink more fluids. Water is what helps fiber work. Without it,  fiber can block the digestive system.

* Spread fiber throughout the day. Minimal after your early morning ablutions, low fiber for breakfast, never mind the Kelloggs, and more fiber later in the day.

* Weight loss programs that use fiber as an alternative to dietary alterations are useless in the long run. You will get all those pounds right back.

* Look out for signs of fatigue. Be honest about your complexion: is it ruddy and glowing or sallow and haggard? If you are suffering from chronic fatigue or anemia, cut your fiber intake.

* Use vitamin and mineral supplements 6 hours before a fiber rich meal.

* When using products high in fiber, check for other ingredients. You will be surprised how often high fiber products also have oils, animal fats or eggs listed as comparable ingredients. These could offset the benefits the fiber could have for your heart.

 

Fiber and Your Heart

The presence of an unbroken substance like fibre in large quantity in your meal reduces the absorption of cholesterol from the food intake. This in turn decreases the manufacture of cholesterol in your liver. Besides this mechanical `sweeping' action of fibre, it also eliminates cholesterol by its chemical action: an increased intake of fibre helps in the production of a chemical chenode oxycholate which keeps bile cholesterol in solution and helps prevent the formation of gall stones. In both ways it reduces harmful cholesterol that would otherwise gum up your blood vessels and heart.

But remember, fiber blocks out all fats, including the good HDL-cholesterol that can by itself reverse heart disease. According to the ADA, fat has many essential uses, including skin and hair growth, storing and transporting fat soluble vitamins such as A, D, E and K, protecting cell walls, keeping bodies warm and protecting organs. Take fiber, but only in moderate amounts. Replace sources of LDL-cholesterol with HDL-rich foods as a better long term solution to combat CHD.