Striving4Zen

We eat for our health and to feed our our bones, blood, and bowels, but some nutrients just don't play well with others. Take calcium and iron for instance. Calcium can reduce your ability to absorb iron by as much as 50%. However, calcium only interferes with non-heme iron, which comes from plant-based foods, not with heme iron, found in meat. This interplay between calcium and iron is really only important if you suffer from anemia, because although short-term iron absorption is reduced by calcium, studies have found that iron stored in the blood is not.

When it comes to calcium, fiber binds to the mineral, reducing its absorption. Studies have found that wheat fiber reduces calcium absorption by about half. If you're like most folks and you aim to get a jump-start on fulfilling your recommended daily intake of fiber and calcium with your bowl of breakfast cereal, choose cereals that feature oats or other grains since they don't seem to block the calcium.

Ultimately, if you eat a well balanced diet and aim to eat your nutrients rather than find them in supplements, you're probably getting all the vitamins, minerals, and fiber you need. Just think of this post as a little food for thought.

Thanks Fit!

Labels: anemia, calcium, eating healthy, essential nutrient, fiber, heme iron, iron, nutrients

A kind of dietary fiber known as "resistant starch" is emerging as a new weight loss powerhouse.

A 2008 Swedish study found that people who ate a resistant starch at supper (in the form of barley bread) felt much less hungry than those who munched on plain white bread — and the hunger-quenching effect lasted past breakfast the next day. Found in beans, slightly green bananas, and potatoes (white and sweet), among other foods, this kind of fiber "resists" being digested. Because the starch doesn't enter your bloodstream, it stabilizes blood sugar levels and may lower diabetes risk. It also boosts levels of healthful bacteria that nurture the immune system.


Stay healthy
Load up your diet with these indigestible carbohydrates, also found in brown rice and corn, says Leslie Bonci, RD, author of the American Dietetic Association Guide to Better Digestion. Because the starch becomes resistant during cooling, serve these foods at room temperature or from the fridge — think three-bean or (low-fat mayo) potato salad. You can find foods fortified with a resistant starch made from corn under the brand name Hi-maize (see our picks). "If you're eliminating carbs to watch your weight, you're not doing yourself any favors," Bonci says. "Adding these starches is an easy way to control both hunger and blood sugar."

Source

Labels: bananas, beans, fiber, healthy diet, resistant starch, study, Sweet potato

Dietary fiber comes from the thick cell wall of plants. It is an indigestible complex carbohydrate. Fiber is divided into two general categories- water soluble and water insoluble.

Labels: fiber, fruit juice, fruits and veggies, grains, healthy diet, insoluble fiber, refined foods, soluble fiber, sugar, Whole Foods, Whole grains, whole wheat

Labels: copper, fiber, iron, protein, quinoa, Whole grains

Dr. Oz says the positive effects of getting enough fiber will happen "almost immediately." The fiber can help move things through your system—including toxins—very quickly. And that's not all. "Bile, when it gets absorbed through the bowel, turns into cholesterol. So when you take a lot of fiber in your diet, you suck the bile out of you, and your cholesterol drops automatically. It also gets rid of sugar, which helps the diabetics. And it's a great tool if you want to lose weight because it makes you feel full."

Do you need to get more fiber in your diet? Most likely, Dr. Oz says. The average American gets just seven grams of fiber a day. But women need about 25 grams a day, and men need 35 grams a day. "That's somewhere between seven and nine helpings of fruits and vegetables," he says.

If you radically increase your intake of fiber, though, you may feel gassy. "Your intestinal tract isn't ready for it," Dr. Oz says. "The fiber in the bowel is permeated by all these bacteria, the bacteria eat the fiber, and they make gas. That's their waste product. So you've got to slowly build up when you add fiber to your diet. But at the end of the day, you're going to have some gas. But it's a good sign because you're digesting food that's good for you."

Source

Labels: digestion, Dr. Oz, fiber, healthy diet, healthy eating, Oprah

When it comes to bread, it is not safe to assume that all brown bread is full of fiber. There are many breads out there that are really white bread darkened with caramel coloring or molasses, and neither of those ingredients offer much in the way of fiber.

You need to read the nutrition label and the list of ingredients to make sure you are getting whole-grain bread. When reading labels look for the words: whole wheat, whole grain, whole mill, whole oat, or whole barley. The keyword is "whole." Also check the fiber content of the bread and go for the highest amount possible. I like my sliced bread to contain four grams of fiber per slice, but will settle for three grams, especially if the sugar content is low.

Thanks FitSugar!

Labels: bread, fiber, nutrition, Whole grains

I am loving this new book, The F-Factor Diet ($16.47). The basis of the book is to make sure that the foods you eat the most of have enough fiber. I love the idea of adding more fiber into your diet, not only for weight loss, but for the amazing benefits it brings (reduced risk of heart disease). Plus who doesn't love a diet that tells you to eat more?
Tanya Zuckerbrot, the author of the book is a well established nutritionist who has been practicing this program with clients for more than ten years. In other words, she knows her stuff. Of course there is way more to it than that and you'd have to read to book to get all the details, however Tanya gave me the scoop on the five best foods for summer. Here is one of them:
Summer Dish: sautéed or grilled squash Summer squash contains vitamin C as well as beta-carotene, folate, and fiber. These nutrients make summer squash a tool in preventing cancers, heart disease, and diseases of inflammation such as arthritis and asthma.
Whether you're trying to lose weight or just adopt a healthier eating program, summer squash's rich fiber content can help you get full faster -- and give you many of the nutrients you need.
Missed the others? Well, Tanya also told us about tomatoes, salmon, blueberries and corn. Yum!

Labels: F Factor, fiber, health food, nutrition