Autobiography of fiber
Hi everyone, I am fiber. You all may be knowing me well. I come across you in different means of transport. Some of you may not be liking me and some of you might have learned to co-exist with me. I am not very good-looking and don’t have any glamorous identity. You can always locate me in plant-based diets. Some diets have special rooms for me where I occupy more space and in some diets room allocated for me is small so I occupy less space there. You all need me but see the irony you cannot digest me. I have a few addresses viz fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans and legumes, and nuts and seeds where you can locate them. You have to expel me from your body. We are two brothers. One is called soluble and the other is non-soluble. Though we are brothers some of our functions vary in your body.
You know we also live together in some of the diets. We both brothers introduce ourselves about our roles.
Soluble fiber
I am soluble fiber. If you want to reduce your weight I can be of immense help. When you permit me to enter your body, I invite water to come to me and then we both make a gel. This gel in turn slows digestion. When the digestion is slowed down the hunger comes down which results in your requiring fewer calories. If you want me to do magic in your body please invite me in the form of oats, nuts, legumes, etc.
Over to my brother.
Insoluble fiber
Hi, by now you would have been impressed by my brother. Of course, he got his first chance to glorify himself. But mind it, don’t underestimate the power of a common man….are sorry power of insoluble fiber. I just watched a movie that has this dialogue.
My liking regard to water is different from my brother’s. I don’t want water to come near to me. Oh no, I don’t have any hydrophobia! I just like pushing water away. I have a very important portfolio, I am on a mission of road clearance drive. Road! Yes, the road inside your body, is the intestine. I don’t gel with the water. I come to party along with fruits and vegetables nuts and seeds are my friends. My best friend is wheat bran. I tell you a secret; wheat bran is my soul. Wherever it goes I follow him and we together make wonders of clearance drive in your body. If we don’t do our job properly there will be congestion in your body like the congestion at Everest in the year 2019. You will be marveled at my attraction that a lot of other members in your body who want to travel out of your body always look for me and cling to me like iron clings to the magnet and find their way out of your body along with me.
How do I benefit you?
Recently, an inquisitive person asked me how do you provide any benefit to human beings. I was asked to supply a list of major benefits given by me. The list I gave to that person included the following:
- I help your bowel movement, which fixes your constipation. Do you know when I travel in your intestine, I act like a snow-plow to shovel the waste from your intestine?
- This I do by increasing the size of your stool. When it becomes bulky it finds an easy way out and is in a hurry when the time comes.
- You know when your stool is watery, and you take my services by iviging me I absorb the water which can cause discomfort to you and unify the material and show it the way out in adignified way;
- You may be amazed to know that your colon is always in love with me; I keep her fit and healthy. Even colorectal cancer is not allowed to be let in your body when I am there beside you.
- By the way, when I am there to regulate your bowel, hemorrhoids find it difficult to knock at your door and their longing to occupy some space in your body is not fulfilled;
- Before I forget, I tell you that in diverticulosis, you can count on me.
- Also, FYI, though I have been doing it for ages, but your doctors have discovered not very long ago that I am good for your heart, as I can effectively trim your cholesterol and as a bonus doctors are also looking at me to help deal with sugar level. Do you know how I do it, simple, I come in the way of sugar absorption in your body.
There are many other benefits of mine which your scientists and doctors will discover in the time to come. But don’t wait; include me in your diet; I am your eternal friend.
After learning about me you may be curious as to how much of me will be sufficient to help you. If you are less than 50 years of age and a man, take 35 grams of me and the respected women take 25 grams. In case you are more than 50 years of age then this quantity comes to about 30 and 25 grams respectively.
Yes of course don’t overdo me. If you take more of me some unwanted guests like bloating diarrhea and discomfort in the stomach may arrive at your doorsteps. Further, I may also elope with calcium and magnesium from your body if you overdo it on me.
For those of you who might be having any allergy to me be careful about my entry into your premises.
