Welcome to the Nutrition Facts podcast. I'm your host, Dr. Michael Greger. I'm thrilled that you've

decided to join me today because the more I learn about the latest in nutrition research, the more

convinced I am that this information can make a real difference in all our lives. And I like

nothing better than sharing it with you. Today we take a close look at fiber, that fabulous stuff

that helps decrease our cancer risk and lowers our risk of colitis, Crohn's disease, appendicititis,

constipation. It's something we need to get enough of on a daily basis. So why don't we eat enough

of it? In our first story, we share our guidelines and how to read food labels for grain products such as

bread and breakfast cereals. When people think fiber, they think constipation. And it's true if we

get Americans just to eat the minimum recommended daily intake of fiber containing foods, we could

save our country 80 billion dollars. And that's just from the effects on constipation alone.

Accumulating evidence indicates that greater dietary fiber intakes reduce risk for diabetes,

heart disease, certain cancers, weight gain, obesity, diabetes disease as well as constipation.

So we need to eat more fiber rich foods, which means eating more whole grains, vegetables,

fruits, and legumes, beans, split piece, chickpeas, and lentils. As fiber intake goes up,

the risk of metabolic syndrome appears to go down, less inflammation and an apparent stepwise

drop in obesity risk. And so no surprise, perhaps that greater dietary fiber intake is associated

with a lower risk of heart disease. 9% lower risk for every additional 7 grams a day of total

fiber consumed. That's just like some rice beans or a few servings of fruits and vegetables.

How does fiber do its magic? What are the mechanisms by which dietary fiber makes

stand our lifespan? Helps get rid of excess bile, feeds our good bacteria, changes our gut hormones,

which collectively helps control the cholesterol and body weight, blood sugar and blood pressure,

which reduces the risk for cardiovascular disease. Reducing inflammation is a whole other mechanism

...