Are you getting enough fibre?

What's Up Docs?

BBC

Health & Fitness, Nature, Science

4.4 • 659 Ratings

🗓️ 23 September 2025

⏱️ 29 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Welcome to What’s Up Docs?, the podcast where doctors and identical twins Chris and Xand van Tulleken clear up the confusion around every aspect of our health and wellbeing.

In this episode, they want to answer some of the most important questions about dietary fibre. What is it and why do our bodies need it? They’ll explore the best sources of fibre - both natural and processed - and unpack the growing trend of fibre-enriched foods. Also, they’ll discuss easy ways to add more fibre into our daily routines without overhauling our diets.

They speak to Dr Deirdre Tobias, an obesity and nutritional epidemiologist at the Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, to find out.

If you want to get in touch, you can email us at whatsupdocs@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp us on 08000 665 123.

Presenters: Drs Chris and Xand van Tulleken Guest: Dr Deirdre Tobias Producers: Maia Miller-Lewis and Jo Rowntree Executive Producer: Rami Tzabar Editor: Kirsten Lass Maia Miller-Lewis Researcher: Grace Revill Tech Lead: Reuben Huxtable Social Media: Leon Gower Digital Lead: Richard Berry Composer: Phoebe McFarlane Sound Design: Ruth Rainey

At the BBC: Assistant Commissioner: Greg Smith Commissioning Editor: Rhian Roberts

A Loftus Media production for BBC Radio 4

Transcript

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0:00.0	BBC Sounds, music, radio, podcasts.
0:07.5	It's like going into an ice path with your hands as the ice.
0:10.8	In 2025, we were here for the entertainment.
0:13.8	Ellis and John.
0:14.9	Have you not considered just coffee, which is what I do?
0:17.6	Sightracked with Annie and Nick.
0:19.4	Stevie Wonder, welcome. I'm pleasure. Loyal Carnar is with us. Want to hear all about Glastonbury. And Celebrity Traitors Uncloaked. Welcome to Uncloaked, Ireland. Oh, thanks for having me, Ed. The winner. I know, still hasn't sunk in. Get the best of 2025 with podcasts on BBC Sounds.
0:43.0	It's nice to see you, Zandi. What have you got for me? Chris, I've had a demanding 24 hours.
0:48.7	I had to go to Manchester for a BBC thing. And I love going to Manchester, but I find the trains frustrating. Anyway, I get to Houston. I have my headphones on. I'm listening to an Inspector Morse book, enjoying it very much. Make my way to the train. Getting irritated with the number of station announcements that are telling me what to do and where to go. Get on the train. Continuing irritation from the endless announcements. Where the train's going. We all know where the train's going, mate. I even get slightly frustrated when they're checking the tickets, and I think, well, I've already put it in. I just want to read my book, do my work, not be disturbed. And I've got up my little stainless steel container of dinner, which I'm eating with a spoon. I'm watching my show. And the ticket inspector says, of course this train doesn't go to Manchester.
1:31.7	Everyone's looking at me. And obviously I've spread out all my food all over the table and everything. I mean, it was so embarrassing and ridiculous. It was awful really. I got in at, you know,
1:38.5	midnight. My bedtime is normally 9pm.
1:43.0	Hello, welcome to what's ups. I'm Dr. Chris.
1:45.6	I'm Dr. Zandt.
1:46.6	From caffeine to menstrual health.
1:48.9	From laughter to embarrassment, in fact.
1:51.3	We take the pulse of the health and well-being world.
1:53.6	We're exploring all the questions that we all have about how to look after ourselves.
1:57.5	And today we're talking about fibre.
2:03.9	Zand, did you know that 90% of people in this country are not getting the recommended daily amount of fibre? That does feel about right. That's not
2:08.8	surprising. And I think it's because fibre's not sexy. We all know that protein's good,
2:13.9	fat and sugar are bad. Protein's healthy, fat and sugar are delicious. But fibre is about gas, bloating, constipation, bowels, tummies, poo. None of those are glamorous topics. In today's episode, I want to give fibre a bit of a glow-up, but first, I want to come back to your story. Yes, because the story doesn't end there. So then I go to Manchester. I do my day of work.
2:35.2	I'm a bit tired because obviously my train shenanigans.
	...

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