Eat Plenty of Produce

Aim for 2½ cups of vegetables and 2 cups of fruit a day, for a 2,000-calorie diet. If you consume more calories, aim for more; if you eat fewer than 2,000 calories, you can eat less. Include green, orange, red, blue/purple and yellow produce. The nutrients, fiber and other compounds in these foods may help protect against certain types of cancer and other diseases. Legumes, rich in fiber, count as vegetables, though are moderately high in calories. Choose whole fruits over juice for more fiber. Frozen and canned fruits and vegetables are good options.

Should I take a fiber supplement?

In a word, no. Are you surprised? Many of our patients are. They stare at us with eyes the size of dinner plates when we tell them to stop using their supplemental fiber. The fiber supplement industry has done its advertising and marketing so well that nearly everyone in America is convinced they need to drop some powder in a glass of water, stir, and drink every morning. It’s just not true.

In fact, you might be surprised to learn that most fiber supplements contain very little fiber. Most foods contain more. Take a look at the nutrition facts panel on any fiber supplement. You’ll find that most supplements contain somewhere between 3 and 5 grams of fiber and 25 or so calories. You can easily get that much fiber from food. More important, the fiber in food comes in a complete package that aids digestion. A colleague of ours at Johns Hopkins Hospital tells us that nearly all of his patients who take fiber supplements experience lots of gas and bloating and little constipation relief. Real foods work better, he says, because most contain water and/or oil, two essential ingredients that help fiber do its job.

Health Benefits of Fruits and Vegetables

There is a good amount of research documenting the many benefits of fruits and vegetable intake on health. Several studies have found that eating more fruits and vegetables is associated with a decreased risk of heart disease. One study even found that eating more than three servings per day slashed the risk of heart disease by 70%. Because fruits and vegetables are low in calories but high in fiber, they could even help keep your weight under control. One study followed 133,000 people over a 24-year span. It showed that when people increased their intake of fruits and non-starchy vegetables their weight tended to decrease. Finally, fruit and vegetable intake may benefit your blood sugar. The fiber from these foods slows the absorption of sugar, which can keep blood sugar levels steady.