Nov092009
Fiber Fiber Fiber
Filed under Day to Day by kristen at 11:50 am on Nov 09 2009
As I mentioned, last week I “attended” a webinar that Kellogg present about fiber. The webinar was titled “Raising the Grade on Fiber”. First, I was very honored to be asked to list to the webinar since there were a limited number of spot
Leslie Bonci, registered dietitian, was the presenter for the webinar. Ms Bonci pointed out that Americans are earning an F in fiber. There is so much confusion on what fiber is, why it is needed, and how much we need. She pointed out three main benefits of fiber: better digestion, heart health, and weight control.
Their studies have shown that 9 out of 10 Americans are not getting enough fiber in their daily diet. (WOW!)
Ms Bonci’s stated that following requirements for fiber in our diets:
Women 19-50 years of age should get 25 grams of fiber a day. Men 19-50 years old should get 38 grams. And children should get their age in grams of fiber plus 5 more grams in addition. I found the recommended amounts very interesting. Since attending the webinar, I have been paying a lot of attention to how many grams of fiber I am getting in every day. I am not hitting that 25 gram mark. I am working on it but boy is that a stretch. I also found it interesting about the recommended amount for children. So for example, Sydney is 7 years old. So she should get 7 grams (for her age) plus an additional 5 grams for a total of 12 grams of fiber a day.
Ms Bonci also pointed out that whole grains and fiber ARE NOT the same. So many product packages and labels tend to be confusing and can lead people to believe that they are getting in enough fiber when in fact they are not. She suggested that maybe this confusion is leading Americans to not get enough fiber in their daily diets on a regular basis.
She explained it this way: whole grains are ingredients in food where fiber is a nutrient. We, as consumers, cannot assume that products that claim to be “a good source of whole grains” is high enough in fiber to be a good source of fiber.
Good source of fiber must have at least 3 grams of fiber per serving. Excellent source must have at least 5 grams of fiber per serving.
Kellogg & Ms Bonci suggested that we “Flip for Fiber”. Flip packaging over to read the label. The only way that we can know for sure a product has enough fiber is to read the nutritional information label.
As a participant we were introduced to a website that Kellogg has: www.kelloggsnutrition.com There are some interesting tools which include a “Fiber-pe-dia“, fiber tracker, and other great features. Make sure to take some time to check it out.
I have always tried to get in more fiber to my diet. As I found I am still lacking in that department but have already taken steps to include more fiber in my diet. I am reading nutritional labels even more closely.
1 Tommieon 14 Nov 2009 at 7:59 am
Fiber is in EVERYTHING I eat, Kristen. I definitely get enough. Add more fruits and veggies to your diet! No need to read labels. Eat one ingredient foods. Bananas. Apples. Oranges. Tomatoes. Cucumbers. It’s really easy.