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Fibre: why you need it and where to find it!

Health, Nutrition

· Health,Nutrition

Fibre is also known as roughage and is very important to our health and well-being. Roughage not only helps you feel fuller but it also helps aid digestion and prevents constipation.

Research in the area of high fibre diets has revealed many health benefits. There is strong evidence to support that… eating roughage on a daily basis is associated with a decreased risk of heart disease, stroke, type II diabetes and bowel cancer.

Adults need about 30 grams of fibre per day, where as children need between 15-25 grams per day.

Here are some suggestions about how to add fibre into your daily diet:-

  • Fruit (minimum of 2 servings per day) e.g. bananas, apples
  • Vegetables  (minimum of 5 servings per day) e.g. carrots, salad greens, broccoli, cabbage, Brussel sprouts,
  • Legumes – such as beans (all varieties), lentils, chickpeas
  • Dried fruits – prunes, apricots
  • Nuts – such as almonds, walnuts, Brazil nuts, cashews (all nuts unsalted and without sugar etc.)
  • Seeds – such as flaxseeds, chia seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, pepitas
  • Wholegrain/wholemeal breads and pasta
  • Wholegrains such as rice (brown, wild), oats, quinoa, millet, bulger, barley and buckwheat
  • Bran or psyllium husks

I’d like to highlight something important for parents with children diagnosed with ADHD…

research is showing a link between obesity and ADHD in both children and adults. As a result of these findings, it is more important to introduce healthy high fibre foods into your child’s diet at an early stage. Being over-weight and obese is linked to heart disease, stroke, type II diabetes and bowel cancer.

So, if everybody eats healthy high fibre diets in the family home then everyone benefits in the short term and long term!