As we get older, weight management can be difficult, but did you know that one of the best ways to help manage your weight is by eating more fibrous foods? High-fiber foods like fruit, legumes, whole grains, and certain vegetables can help with reaching your weight management goals. While getting more fiber in your diet is important, you can also help fill the fiber gap with a good fiber supplement. Taking a fiber supplement is not only convenient, but also a great way to improve your overall digestive health. Here are a few ways that fiber can help you with weight management.
1. Maintain Regularity
Getting enough fiber in your daily diet will help you get on the road to healthy bowel habits and help prevent constipation. There are two types of fiber – soluble and insoluble, and we need both to maintain regularity.
Soluble fiber is found in foods, such as barley, beans, and nuts. Insoluble fiber is found in wheat bran and whole grains. Soluble fiber allows more water to remain in your stool, making waste softer, larger, and therefore, easier to pass through your intestines. Insoluble fiber adds bulk to your fecal material, which hastens its passage through your gut and prevents that constipated feeling.
Psyllium fiber in the form of a supplement, such as NuSyllium, contains soluble fiber (2 grams per serving) and can be added easily as part of your daily fiber goals. Fiber makes your bowel movements more regular, decreasing the bulk of the stool you carry in your body. Having regular bowel movements can help with weight management because it clears out extra stool sitting around in your intestines that can cause excess weight, to put it simply; waste = weight.
2. Feel Fuller and Maintain Good Blood Sugar Levels
A high-fiber diet that includes soluble fiber will make you feel fuller after meals, so you are less likely to crave those in-between meal snacks! Fiber fills your stomach signaling your brain that it’s time to stop eating. You'll need to drink plenty of water to move fiber through your digestive system, which helps deal with hunger as well. All of that water will contribute to feelings of fullness and help control thirst, which is often confused with being hungry. Soluble fiber, such as the psyllium fiber in NuSyllium, absorbs water, forming a gel-like filling inside your gut that slows the absorption of sugars into the bloodstream. Lower blood sugar levels mean lower insulin levels – and that means your body is less likely to store fat.
3. Get More Energy
Although fiber will not give you an energy boost directly, eating a high-fiber diet can help remove sources of fatigue. If high levels of waste and metabolic byproducts build up in your body, they may contribute to fatigue. Think of food as your fuel, so try to start your morning off with a breakfast that is high in fiber, which will help provide enough energy to get you through the day. Meals that are packed with both fiber and protein help your stomach feel full and regular as well as keeping your blood sugar steady. Eating low-fiber grains will cause your blood sugar to spike, which will eventually cause an energy crash.
While it may be ideal to get most of our daily fiber in the foods we eat, let’s face it – many of us don’t, and need to take a fiber supplement to meet our fiber goals. Taking a natural fiber that’s certified organic, such as NuSyllium Organic Natural Fiber, to supplement our daily diet is an easy and healthy way to help with weight management.