How much fiber should you eat per day? A nutritionist weighs in

With the country’s fiber consumption seemingly in crisis, we’ve taken a close look at how much fiber your diet should contain and provided tips recommended by nutritionists.

Government guidelines say we should consume 30g of fiber per day as part of a healthy, balanced diet. According to the NHS, most adults in the UK only eat around 20g a day, so there is a significant shortage that needs to be made up.

For the normal daily functioning of your digestive system, it’s important to include fiber in your diet, says Nichola Ludlam-Raine, registered dietitian and author of How not to eat highly processed foods.

“Fiber is extremely important for digestive health.” To keep our bodies moving, we need a mix of insoluble and soluble fiber. “This helps keep the bowels moving and helps prevent things like constipation,” she says.

Consuming the recommended daily amount of fiber has other benefits.

“Also, a good fiber intake is very important to get cholesterol levels under control.” And from a cancer perspective, it helps reduce the incidence of colon and colon cancer,” says Ludlam-Raine.

A diet rich in fiber is not rocket science.

“If you eat plenty of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, beans and legumes, you can reach the goal of 30g of fiber,” says Ludlam-Raine.

“For my patients, I always focus on protein and foods.” “For example, snack combinations like hummus and carrots, nut butters and grapes, berries and yogurt, nuts and dried fruits, to try to provide both protein for satiety and fiber for gut health to receive,” she says.

Ludlam-Raine recommends consuming one to two sources of fiber per meal, such as whole grain carbohydrates, beans, legumes, lentils, and fruits and vegetables.

In a recent post on her Instagram, Ludlam-Raine describes what this might look like on a typical day.

• Breakfast: two Weetabix with 200 ml almond milk, garnished with 1 banana and a handful of walnuts (7 g)⁣.
• Lunch: Half a pack of microwaveable brown rice with salmon fillet, 100g broccoli and ½ chopped pepper (7.3g)⁣.
• Dinner: Fajitas made from a whole wheat tortilla wrap with a chicken breast, a handful of lettuce, peppers and half an onion (7 g)⁣.
• Snacks: a handful (80 g) of carrot sticks with a quarter cup of hummus (5 g)⁣ and 20 g of dark chocolate (2 g)⁣.

From a lack of time and money to preoccupation with protein, there are countless reasons why you may not be getting enough fiber.

“We’ve just heard in the headlines that the UK diet is typically 50% or more highly processed foods,” says Ludlam-Raine. “For teenagers and (lower-income people), it can be 80%. “Many of the highly processed foods often contain little or no fiber because they contain a lot of refined carbohydrates.”

Our modern, busy lifestyle could also be the cause. “People eat on the go, or they choose a sandwich and then just the white bread, and then they choose the chocolate bar instead of some fruit.” “People end up choosing convenience at the expense of healthier whole foods,” says Ludlam- Raine.

Even among more nutrition-conscious people, fiber often doesn’t find the place it deserves in our diet. If you quickly scroll through any meal prepper’s TikTok feed, you’ll find dozens of recipes touting protein as the all-around food group for your fitness and health goals.

While it’s important to get enough protein, it’s not just about adding chicken to every meal.

“People don’t realize that whole grains contain protein,” says Ludlam-Raine. “Protein is found in bread and cereal.” You get both fiber and protein in things like beans. “I think it’s about adding plant-based protein sources alongside meat, fish and dairy products, which are naturally lower in fiber.”

Even though there aren’t any major downsides to switching to a high-fiber diet, there are a few things you can do to go easy on your body.

“My advice is always to increase your fiber intake gradually, because gradually increasing the amount of fiber and variety will allow your gut bacteria to thrive and adapt so you can better handle more.” “We will be making fiber in the future,” recommends Ludlam Raine.

It is also important to spread the allotted 30g throughout the day.

“Make sure you get (your fiber) with plenty of fluids throughout the day.” I always say, remember, “FFM: fiber, fluid, exercise.” Space your fiber. Increase it gradually. Spread fluids and exercise throughout the day.

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