8 easy ways to get more fiber

If you’re like most Americans, you probably don’t get enough fiber in your diet. Only 7% of Americans eat enough fiber.

“Fiber deficiency is truly epidemic,” says Michael Greger, MD, director of nutritionfacts.org and author of the forthcoming book. How not to grow old.

Fiber is the part of plant foods that your body cannot digest. And even if your body can’t absorb it, it plays an important role in your health.

This is especially true for people over the age of 50. Most people know that older people are more prone to constipation, which can be prevented by eating more fiber. But older people’s stomachs also produce less acid, and the intestines may have a harder time breaking down food, which can affect nutrient absorption, says Michelle Kwan, a research assistant at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and co-author of the 2021 study. Healthy diet for healthy aging magazine article Nutrients. Eating enough fiber can help offset these changes, he says.

But fiber does much more than support healthy digestion.

It can help you live longer. Really. 2015 analysis in American Journal of Epidemiology They found that people who ate high-fiber diets had a significantly reduced risk of death from all causes.

It can also help you age. According to a 10-year study of more than 1,600 participants published in the journal, regularly eating a high-fiber diet is associated with successful aging, defined as fewer memory problems, disability, depression, and chronic disease. . Journal of Gerontology in 2016. It is even less associated with damage to the brain’s white matter, which can affect memory and balance with age.

Lower cholesterol, blood pressure, blood sugar, and inflammation, as well as lower risk of heart disease, diabetes, depression, stroke, and possibly colon cancer, are all associated with a high-fiber diet.

There is another benefit: it can help with weight management. In fact, a lack of fiber may be one of the biggest obstacles to weight loss Total body reset By AARP Editor Stephen Perrin. That’s because fiber can block the absorption of calories and help you feel fuller for longer.

Kwan says the average amount of fiber consumed by older adults is only 16.1 grams. This is how much you should eat:

• Men over 50: 30 grams per day
• Women over 50: 21 grams per day

Part of the challenge is that appetite declines with age. But the bigger reason is that the American diet contains meat and dairy products that have no fiber and refined flours that contain minimal fiber.