Category Archives: Diabetes

Low-Fiber Diet May Raise Teen’s Risk for Heart Disease and Diabetes

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TUESDAY, June 5 (HealthDay News) — Teens who eat a low-fiber diet are at increased risk for heart disease and diabetes, a new study suggests.

Researchers looked at 559 teens, ages 14 to 18, in Augusta, Ga., and found that they consumed an average of about one-third of the daily recommended amount of fiber. Only about 1 percent of the teens met the recommended daily fiber intake of 28 grams for females and 38 grams for males.

Teens who didn’t eat enough fiber tended to have bigger bellies and higher levels of inflammatory factors in their blood. Both of those conditions are major risk factors for cardiovascular disease and diabetes, the Georgia Health Sciences University researchers said.

While the study found an association between low-fiber diets and teens having these risk factors, it did not prove a cause-and-effect relationship.

The study, released June 1 in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, also found that a low-fiber diet was associated with higher levels of overall body fat in females, but not in males.

“The simple message is adolescents need to eat more fruits, vegetables and whole grains,” study co-first author and bone biologist Dr. Norman Pollock said in a university news release. “We need to push recommendations to increase fiber intake.”

High-fiber foods include grain, cereals, legumes, and certain fruits and vegetables (when not overcooked), according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

A better understanding of the relationships and risks of diet, lack of exercise and obesity in children and teens is particularly important at a time when about one-third of youngsters in the United States are overweight or obese, the researchers said.

However, they noted that getting teens to eat more fiber can be difficult because they have a preference for processed foods, and the side effects of eating more fiber can include intestinal gas, bloating and diarrhea.

More information

The American Academy of Pediatrics has more about the importance of fiber in a teen’s diet.

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Dietary Fiber Aids Type 2 Diabetes and Weight Loss

glucosemonitorIt seems these days, we are having more and more difficulty taking care of our weight. Why may this be? First off, our lifestyles have become much more stationary. We see more television and we spend much more time on the web. Many of us spend our days working behind a desk as opposed to being outdoors. Stress is an additional aspect that appears to prevent weight loss. Not just does it create the release of tension hormones which by themselves might create weight gain. However tension and other factors cause us to eat way too much.

However I think most of us comprehend that it is the type of foods we eat that prevent our efforts at weight loss. We eat high fat and high carb foods. They taste good, and they are cheap and convenient. They are missing nutrients including vitamins and minerals. However there is one particular nutrient that we actually should eat more of, it is fiber.

Dietary Fiber
One of the primary reasons why we do not get enough fiber is that most of our foods are highly processed. Most of the grains we eat have the fiber got rid of. And we do not eat entire fruits and vegetables. To enjoy the benefits of fiber, we should get more of these entire foods into our diets. However the question is, why is fiber vital and just how is able to it help with weight loss.

There is one very basic reason why fiber is able to assist with weight loss. It is bulk, it is not digested like most of the further elements of food. So It leaves us feeling complete and pleased. This fiber fills up our digestion tracts and sends a signal to our brains that we are complete. Most of the processed foods we eat are digested very rapidly, and this leaves us feeling starving after awhile.

Fiber is able to even bind up a specific quantity of fat and cholesterol in a dinner. This fat might be excreted before it is also taken in. And in general, keeping your digestion tract regular has been associated with lower weights.

Diabetic Issues
Some people do not recognize this, yet diabetic issues and being overweight go hand in hand. And the good news is that fiber is able to assist with both of these situations. However there is a certain kind of fiber that is especially helpful for diabetic issues. It is soluble fiber. The reason dietary fiber is so helpful for diabetic issues is that it forms a gel when blended with water. The carbohydrates in our food mixes with this gel. This greatly reduces the absorption of these carbs in our blood streams, which then will certainly slow blood glucose spikes that every diabetic dreads.

It has been shown by numerous studies that featuring more fiber in your diet may be a step in the correct direction for you even if you are diabetic, or simply should lose some weight.

Link to original article: http://diabeteseffect.com/147/dietary-fiber-for-aiding-type-2-diabetes-and-weight-loss/