30 Days of Recipes to Help You Eat More Fiber (2024)

FAQs

What are the 10 best foods for fiber? ›

Fruits, vegetables, grains, beans, peas and lentils all help you reach that daily fiber goal. Fiber-rich foods have a mix of different fiber types. Some fiber helps keep stool moving in the large intestine. Other types of fiber help a person feel full for longer.

These high-fiber meals, including Beef & Bean Sloppy Joes, Grilled Pizza with Prosciutto and Salmon-Stuffed Avocados all contain 8 or more grams of fiber to help you reach the daily amount of fiber recommended by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans—25 grams for women and 30 grams for men.

1. Beans. Lentils and other beans are an easy way to sneak fiber into your diet in soups, stews and salads. Some beans, like edamame (which is a steamed soy bean), are even a great fiber-filled snack.

One simple approach to getting 25 grams of fiber a day is to eat the following: 100 grams uncooked whole grains. 1 cup of cooked beans. 2-3 servings of fruits.

Peanuts and peanut butter are rich in soluble and insoluble dietary fibers, both of which help support regular bowel movements and improve constipation ( 3 , 4 ). Just two tablespoons (32 grams) of natural peanut butter contains 3 grams of fiber, equivalent to about 10% of your daily fiber needs ( 5 , 6 ).

Higher intakes of dietary fibre are associated with a lower risk of heart and circulatory disease, type 2 diabetes and some cancers. Animal products such as meat, fish, eggs and dairy products, like cheese and yoghurt, don't contain any fibre.

One serve is 1/2 cup cooked or raw vegetables, 1/2 cup legumes or 1 cup of leafy greens e.g. cabbage, spinach and lettuce. At least 2 serves of fruit. One serve is 1 medium piece of fruit (banana, apple, orange etc.), 2 smaller fruits (kiwi, mandarin, plum etc.), 1 cup of berries or 30g dried fruit.

Does fiber help empty bowels? ›

Studies have shown that increasing the amount of fiber you eat could increase the number of stools that you pass ( 6 ). In fact, a recent review showed that 77% of people with chronic constipation found some relief by increasing their fiber intake ( 7 ).

Vegetables contain a fiber called cellulose, which can be difficult for your body to break down. By cooking them the fiber will partially break down, making it easier for digestion. Some of our favorite options are carrots, sweet potatoes, squash, and green beans.

Even a seemingly healthy salad from a fast food restaurant is often light on fiber—simple lettuce greens provide only about 0.5 grams of fiber per cup. Look for salads that include other vegetables, and whenever possible, up the fiber content by adding your own nuts, beans, or corn.

Bananas, rich in potassium and fiber and low in sodium, are an important component of heart-healthy diets like DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) that aims for about 4,700 mg dietary potassium daily.