A Healthy Bulk

Nowadays, various supplements are taken due to the restricted and deficient nutrients as a result of widespread poor diet and environmental changes. But one of the most common health problems all over the world is obesity. The bigger question is how to lose weight, either naturally or artificially. Well, most of the times, it is better said than done. Exercise or increased activity, lifestyle changes, and healthy eating habits result to one thing – natural weight loss. But the real question that remains is how to maintain the new, lean body and how to keep losing weight while keeping it off in an invigorating and healthy manner.
High fiber diet is a modified balanced diet with contents higher in fiber. Fiber is also known as the ‘forgotten nutrient’, ‘bulk’ or ‘roughage’. Aside from a healthy way of losing weight and preventing some of the digestive problems, it reduces a certain amount of sugar and fats in the bloodstream. Of all dietary management schemes, macrobiotic or high-fiber diet is one of the diet plans that answer the lingering question of how to remain toned and healthy. Maintaining a long-term weight loss is very challenging. Duyff stated ‘It is true that most of us need more fiber to promote good health.’
A high fiber diet is not only for promoting weight loss since macrobiotics are present on this type of diet. It is one good way of boosting positive changes outside and inside the body. Fibers don’t supplicate calories because the body does not usually absorb fibers. These lead to the incorporation of low calorie group of food such as whole grains, vegetables, legumes, and fruits in weight loss diets. Abundance of fiber is found on the outer surface of this food group that is why using or eating whole grains and unpeeled fruits and vegetables is encouraged as much as possible.

The more the food is in its natural form (unrefined), the higher is its fiber content. According to Peckenpaugh and Poleman: ‘If the adult has learned to like a variety of plant-based, high fiber foods and sugar- free drinks such as water, obesity is less likely to occur as caloric requirements decrease from having sedentary job or being incapacitated from illness or from aging. ’ It is important to establish a regular eating schedule in instituting a high fiber diet. Basically, breakfast should be the heaviest meal while supper is the lightest.
Unrefined foods are recommended rather than processed or refined food. Legumes and nuts can be milk and fish substitutes. Leafy vegetables should be included in meals as frequently as possible and drinking as much water, too, is advised, thus, increasing fluid intake more. Fruits such as apple, banana, guava, star apple and the likes should be avoided if there is constipation. Instead, whole segments of papaya, pineapple, prunes, watermelon and oranges can be eaten. During high fiber diet, intake of alcoholic, carbonated and caffeine beverages should also be avoided.
According to the fiber theory of weight reduction, fibers impede the intestines in absorbing fats and by being a bulk or roughage in the stomach, it gives satisfaction while caloric intake is reduced. David Reuben, a highly acclaimed author/psychiatrist stated that importance of modifying a typical American diet to decreasing cholesterol intake and correct the lack of natural fibers. High fiber diet can also prevent one of the leading cancers in the US, colon cancer. Today, there are considerable studies conducted for the outcome of high fiber diet.
Here is what Assembly of life sciences has to say: ‘Most epidemiological studies on fiber have examined the hypothesis that high fiber diets protects against colorectal cancer. Results of correlation and case-control studies of dietary fiber have sometimes supported and sometimes contradicted this hypothesis. ’ The committee had also stated there are no conclusive evidence that can prove fiber as a complete inhibitor of colon cancer though there is a possibility that some high fiber ingredients can help fight this cancer.
If ever such thing happens, researches propose that only some of the specific elements and not the whole fiber itself are responsible for the occurrence. Though there is no monumental belief that this type of diet cannot actually prevent colon cancer nor believed to have a compelling effect on weight reduction, on the other hand, unlike other dietary schemes, it does not bear immediate health threats and may subsequently be of great help in prolonging healthy weight management.