Fiber Bars vs Fiber Foods : Which Should You Choose ?

Fiber Bars vs Fiber Foods : Which Should You Choose ?

Day 6 of the A – Z blogging challenge and I am blogging the letter F. I thought I would blog about my pet peeve ‘ Fiber’. I call it my pet peeve because I’m always wondering if my family, clients and myself are getting enough fiber in our diet. American Cancer Institute recommends 25 or more gms /day of fiber which can be challenging. Reading food labels is good way to gauge whether you’re meeting your daily requirements. Knowing which foods contain highest amounts of fiber is also important so you can grab those high fiber foods and eat them. With the evolution of fiber bars and granola bars which are flooding the market meeting your RDA for the day just got easier. Fiber bars can give you almost half your daily requirement for fiber, but is that the sensible choice to make ? My recommendation is to eat both fiber bars and fiber foods to meet your fiber requirements, but do NOT rely only on fiber bars alone to provide all your fiber needs. Read the pros and cons below to understand why I say this. Eat a high fiber diet and use fiber bars for when you have not met your fiber requirement for the day. Keep a steady stock of them in your home but do not substitute them for  high fiber foods. You need a balance of both. Discussing below some pros and cons of fiber bars.

 

Pros

Convenient, easy to carry around.

Tasty flavors! Mmmm I love the chocolate chip fiber one bar. It makes me feel am eating a candy car 😉

Great for out-of-town trips when your normal eating schedule is disrupted.

Can give you anywhere between 5 – 12 gms of fiber, thus meeting your fiber requirements easily.

 Cons

Too many bars can cause loose stools. Limit to 2 bars a day.

Can cause a clog in your stomach unless followed by a glass of water.  You must drink a glass or two of water after eating a fiber bar, or it can create a hard clog in your stomach and cause elimination problems ans stomach aches.

They do not fill you up like fiber foods do. Eating a high fiber meal can keep you going for a couple of hours, but you may not that feeling of satiety after eating a bar.

 

Some reasons why fiber is important:

Helps in Ulcers, particularly in the beginning of the small intestine (duodenal ulcers). Also beneficial in controlling diabetes and Heart Disease. It has been found beneficial in healing and preventing types of cancer.

Foods containing fiber:

Bean, legumes, nut, fruit , veggies, bran , fiber enriched cereals, fiber bars, granola bars etc. For a more detailed list click here

Hope you found this post useful ! To read more in my A – Z Blogging challenge, click here. Check back tomorrow for my blog post on the letter G !

 

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