When it comes to nutrition trends, we have seen some weird ones out there. From sea moss gel to intermittent fasting, we have seen various diet trends come and go over social media. Fibermaxxing is a more recent trend, coming in the wake of “proteinmaxxing”. Fibermaxxing is essential trying to max out your daily fiber intake. This number is around 38g per day for men, and 25g for women. The department of health and human services has stated that 90% of women and 97% of men do not intake their recommended amount of fiber.
Health Benefits of Fiber
While fiber is technically not an essential nutrient, it is a vital component of good health, and carries with it a lot of very good benefits. Increasing fiber intake helps to lower bad cholesterol (LDL). Fiber also helps to lower the risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, and colon cancer. It helps you feel full longer, and can be an effective strategy in weight managementment. Finally, fiber also helps support digestive regularity, gut health and blood sugar regulation, leading to better mood and stress levels.
There are two main kinds of fiber: Soluble and insoluble. Both are necessary for a healthy diet, and most high fiber foods contain both naturally.
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Soluble Fiber: This form of fiber dissolves cleanly in water to create a gel like substance in the digestive tract. This is the type of fiber that helps cleans LDL cholesterol from your system, as it binds to cholesterol and excretes it from your body. Soluble fiber also slows digestion and can help you feel fuller for a longer period of time. Finally, it also helps to feed the good bacteria in your gut, helping your gut microbiome stay balanced.
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Insoluble fiber: This form of fiber does not dissolve in water. It helps to act as a sort of binder for the food that moves through your digestive tract and moves it along, preventing constipation.
How to increase fiber intake
Increasing fiber intake should not be a 0 to 100 process, as it takes time for our gut to get used to the change. People who increase their intake of fiber too quickly tend to experience some uncomfortable symptoms, such as gas, bloating, stomach pains, and even increased constipation, especially if you are not increasing your water intake alongside your fiber intake. It is important to note that if you have IBS, Crohn’s disease, or ulcerative colitis, you should be extra careful when increasing dietary fiber and you may want to consult with your doctor before making any sudden changes.
Instead of a more fiber, the better mentality, we should be focusing on making sustainable changes to our diet. Start finding ways to add fiber to your everyday life, being more intentional about having more fiber rich foods throughout the day. Increasing your water intake should also be a priority when trying to make these changes.
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Foods high in soluble fiber: Oats, beans, lentils, seeds, apples, carrots, bananas, avocado, sweet potatoes, psyllium husk
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Foods high in insoluble fiber: Whole wheat bran, brown rice, nuts, seeds, cauliflower, green beans, whole potatoes
So is fibermaxxing good?
As far as trends go, fibermaxxing is one of the good ones. There are points of contention with some people when it comes to whether or not going above the recommended threshold is a good idea, but most dieticians can agree that as long as you are healthy, and are also drinking lots of water, going slightly over is not going to be too big of an issue. In addition, the recommended amount of fiber is actually based on community studies, so of course individuals can actually differ on what their optimum fiber intake is. Work your way up slowly over time and listen to your body and slow down on the fiber if you experience discomfort. Find what fiber optimization means to you, as long as you are getting closer to the fiber threshold than you were before!