4 ms·

They're saying, "for the love of God, feed us some fiber, which is only found in whole plant foods!" > Less than 3% of Americans get even the recommended minim

by oil25 8y ago

They're saying, "for the love of God, feed us some fiber, which is only found in whole plant foods!" > Less than 3% of Americans get even the recommended minimum adequate intake of fiber. On average, we get only about 15 grams a day. The minimum daily requirement is 31.5, so we get less than half the minimum. Men are particularly deficient. If we break down intake by age and gender, after studying the diets of 12,761 Americans, the percent of men between ages 14 and 50 getting the minimum adequate intake is zero. https://nutritionfacts.org/2015/09/29/where-do-you-get-your-fiber/ https://nutritionfacts.org/2015/09/29/where-do-you-get-your-...

randomacct3847 8y ago
Can’t believe I’m going to say this, but sugar free Metamucil is an amazing life hack. Makes going to the bathroom way easier.
- HarryHirsch 8y ago
  Large swathes of the US now have an ALDI supermarket where you can buy genuine German schwarzbrot. Much tastier than psyllium husk in orange juice, although fans of white bread will find it a bit chewy at the beginning.
  - hvidgaard 8y ago
    Come to Denmark, we have 100's of different kinds of rye bread that is significantly better than schwarzbrot. Or just make it yourself, it's not difficult. We have "smørrebrød" which is quite delicious, and there is something for everyone. One particular famous smørrebrøds restaurant has a list of over 200 different kinds to choose from.
- masonic 8y ago
  I buy psyllium husk in bulk and just add it like a condiment. Great with any egg dish.
godzillabrennus 8y ago
I started taking these to supplement my diet and it made me feel so much better: https://smile.amazon.com/GNC-Fiber-Gummy-Strawberry-BlackBerry/dp/B01N6GXMPM/ref=sr_1_25_s_it?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1548730200&sr=1-25&keywords=fiber+gummies https://smile.amazon.com/GNC-Fiber-Gummy-Strawberry-BlackBer...
PhilWright 8y ago
And yet, those people are still alive and well. What is the problem with getting less fibre than recommended?
- agumonkey 8y ago
  Subpar health. I'm no specialist but fiber is said to feed beneficial bacterias in your lower intestines. This has a dual effect: - if not fed right, these bacteria may consume gut mucus, causing inflammation - when fed right, they actually improve digestion efficiency thus, in theory, proper diet can get you from chronic diseased [with the usual western medicine prescriptions] to healthier+more energetic
  - tapland 8y ago
    Just the last six months or so I've seen educated people posting in my feeds about how fiber might just be included in foods that are beneficial, with fiber itself not being so. Well, not that it matters for me since I have Crohn's and can't really eat fiber at all.
- chillacy 8y ago
  Alive but I wouldn't call modern humans the paragon of physical fitness.
gorilla_fight 8y ago
To provide a counterpoint: - Fiber doesn't ward off colon cancer, according to the Harvard School of Public Health: "For years, Americans have been told to consume a high-fiber diet to lower the risk of colon cancer [...] Larger and better-designed studies have failed to show a link between fiber and colon cancer." - Fiber doesn't reduce the risk of heart disease, according to the American Heart Association: "A fiber supplement added to a diet otherwise high in saturated fat and cholesterol provides dubious cardiovascular advantage." Furthermore, these supplements caused "reduced mineral absorption and a myriad of gastrointestinal disturbances" - factors that in fact, contribute to heart disease. - Fiber doesn't prevent breast cancer either, according to the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. In fact, it's the complete opposite: "Carbohydrate intake was positively associated with breast cancer risk." Fiber happens to be a carbohydrate too, and carbohydrates are the only food that contains fiber. - Fiber doesn't counteract diabetes, according to the Harvard School of Public Health: "Fiber intake has also been linked with the metabolic syndrome, a constellation of factors that increases the chances of developing heart disease and diabetes." Truth is, fiber requires more insulin or drugs to control blood sugar, and makes diabetes even more devastating. (excerpts from Fiber Menace by Konstantin Monastyrsky)
- b_tterc_p 8y ago
  Ehhh... your second point merely shows that fiber SUPPLEMENTS don’t help. Your third point is probably misleading as you can get enough fiber with very modest carb intake The fourth follows what seems like a similar dubious path to the third
- ojbyrne 8y ago
  On the Amazon page, all of that text comes from someone presented as authoritative, but turns out to be a _chiropractor_.
  - czardoz 8y ago
    This is why I never listen to advice and opinions on the internet.
  - jodrellblank 8y ago
SamReidHughes 8y ago
Keep in mind that recommended daily requirements are not indisputable science, the phrase "made-up nonsense" comes to mind. The fact that only 3% of the population meets the guidelines but do just fine is proof of this. I think we'd get fiber cravings if we were truly deficient.
- chillacy 8y ago
  Agree that dietary requirements are unscientific, though not sure cravings actually work that way, it would've saved a lot of lives if sailors with scurvy got citrus cravings or something.
  - Reason077 8y ago
    Undoubtably, sailors on long ocean voyages really did crave the fresh foods (fruit, vegetables, meat) which would have contained enough Vitamin C to prevent (and reverse) scurvy. The problem was these were often not actually available on their voyages.
    - TeMPOraL 8y ago
      Were they actually craving those foods, I think the solution to scurvy would have been discovered almost immediately. Alas, the human body rarely if ever communicates useful solutions in this way.
  - SamReidHughes 8y ago
    I got grapefruit juice cravings when experimenting with polyphasic sleep in college, and I had never had the desire to drink grapefruit juice at the college cafeteria before then. That's interesting, but yeah, I'm not sure either. I've managed to ignore my body's signals regarding food in all sorts of destructive ways.
- saiya-jin 8y ago
  US population is not doing just fine when it comes to nutrition and overall health. What is wrong would make a very lengthy article on its own, but I guess we can agree there are definitely things to improve, and this could be one of them. One of the reasons we might not be having fiber cravings is, we don't need it for ourselves per se, but foreign, albeit friendly gut bacteria. It is possible for bacteria to manipulate its hosts ie by releasing some enzymes, but maybe we didn't evolve our symbiosis that far yet. Or we're drowning those cravings into more intense ones like sugar or other addictions.

by oil25 8y ago

randomacct3847 8y ago

Can’t believe I’m going to say this, but sugar free Metamucil is an amazing life hack. Makes going to the bathroom way easier.

HarryHirsch 8y ago
Large swathes of the US now have an ALDI supermarket where you can buy genuine German schwarzbrot. Much tastier than psyllium husk in orange juice, although fans of white bread will find it a bit chewy at the beginning.
- hvidgaard 8y ago
  Come to Denmark, we have 100's of different kinds of rye bread that is significantly better than schwarzbrot. Or just make it yourself, it's not difficult. We have "smørrebrød" which is quite delicious, and there is something for everyone. One particular famous smørrebrøds restaurant has a list of over 200 different kinds to choose from.
masonic 8y ago
I buy psyllium husk in bulk and just add it like a condiment. Great with any egg dish.

godzillabrennus 8y ago

I started taking these to supplement my diet and it made me feel so much better: https://smile.amazon.com/GNC-Fiber-Gummy-Strawberry-BlackBerry/dp/B01N6GXMPM/ref=sr_1_25_s_it?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1548730200&sr=1-25&keywords=fiber+gummies https://smile.amazon.com/GNC-Fiber-Gummy-Strawberry-BlackBer...

PhilWright 8y ago

And yet, those people are still alive and well. What is the problem with getting less fibre than recommended?

agumonkey 8y ago
Subpar health. I'm no specialist but fiber is said to feed beneficial bacterias in your lower intestines. This has a dual effect: - if not fed right, these bacteria may consume gut mucus, causing inflammation - when fed right, they actually improve digestion efficiency thus, in theory, proper diet can get you from chronic diseased [with the usual western medicine prescriptions] to healthier+more energetic
- tapland 8y ago
  Just the last six months or so I've seen educated people posting in my feeds about how fiber might just be included in foods that are beneficial, with fiber itself not being so. Well, not that it matters for me since I have Crohn's and can't really eat fiber at all.
chillacy 8y ago
Alive but I wouldn't call modern humans the paragon of physical fitness.

gorilla_fight 8y ago

To provide a counterpoint: - Fiber doesn't ward off colon cancer, according to the Harvard School of Public Health: "For years, Americans have been told to consume a high-fiber diet to lower the risk of colon cancer [...] Larger and better-designed studies have failed to show a link between fiber and colon cancer." - Fiber doesn't reduce the risk of heart disease, according to the American Heart Association: "A fiber supplement added to a diet otherwise high in saturated fat and cholesterol provides dubious cardiovascular advantage." Furthermore, these supplements caused "reduced mineral absorption and a myriad of gastrointestinal disturbances" - factors that in fact, contribute to heart disease. - Fiber doesn't prevent breast cancer either, according to the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. In fact, it's the complete opposite: "Carbohydrate intake was positively associated with breast cancer risk." Fiber happens to be a carbohydrate too, and carbohydrates are the only food that contains fiber. - Fiber doesn't counteract diabetes, according to the Harvard School of Public Health: "Fiber intake has also been linked with the metabolic syndrome, a constellation of factors that increases the chances of developing heart disease and diabetes." Truth is, fiber requires more insulin or drugs to control blood sugar, and makes diabetes even more devastating. (excerpts from Fiber Menace by Konstantin Monastyrsky)

b_tterc_p 8y ago
Ehhh... your second point merely shows that fiber SUPPLEMENTS don’t help. Your third point is probably misleading as you can get enough fiber with very modest carb intake The fourth follows what seems like a similar dubious path to the third
ojbyrne 8y ago
On the Amazon page, all of that text comes from someone presented as authoritative, but turns out to be a _chiropractor_.
- czardoz 8y ago
  This is why I never listen to advice and opinions on the internet.
- jodrellblank 8y ago

SamReidHughes 8y ago

Keep in mind that recommended daily requirements are not indisputable science, the phrase "made-up nonsense" comes to mind. The fact that only 3% of the population meets the guidelines but do just fine is proof of this. I think we'd get fiber cravings if we were truly deficient.

chillacy 8y ago
Agree that dietary requirements are unscientific, though not sure cravings actually work that way, it would've saved a lot of lives if sailors with scurvy got citrus cravings or something.
- Reason077 8y ago
  Undoubtably, sailors on long ocean voyages really did crave the fresh foods (fruit, vegetables, meat) which would have contained enough Vitamin C to prevent (and reverse) scurvy. The problem was these were often not actually available on their voyages.
  - TeMPOraL 8y ago
    Were they actually craving those foods, I think the solution to scurvy would have been discovered almost immediately. Alas, the human body rarely if ever communicates useful solutions in this way.
- SamReidHughes 8y ago
  I got grapefruit juice cravings when experimenting with polyphasic sleep in college, and I had never had the desire to drink grapefruit juice at the college cafeteria before then. That's interesting, but yeah, I'm not sure either. I've managed to ignore my body's signals regarding food in all sorts of destructive ways.
saiya-jin 8y ago
US population is not doing just fine when it comes to nutrition and overall health. What is wrong would make a very lengthy article on its own, but I guess we can agree there are definitely things to improve, and this could be one of them. One of the reasons we might not be having fiber cravings is, we don't need it for ourselves per se, but foreign, albeit friendly gut bacteria. It is possible for bacteria to manipulate its hosts ie by releasing some enzymes, but maybe we didn't evolve our symbiosis that far yet. Or we're drowning those cravings into more intense ones like sugar or other addictions.