April 10, 2025
Do you get enough fiber? You need that much every day

Do you get enough fiber? You need that much every day

Adults need fiber to promote health and improve digestion, but most people don’t get enough. It is recommended that female adults receive 28 to 34 grams between 22 and 28 grams of fiber per day and male adults.

The concentration on foods that are higher in fiber can help. Fiber preparations can also be appropriate for some people. Getting fiber from food is preferred because food also contains important vitamins and minerals.

Daily recommended fiber card

In general, it is recommended that people receive 14 grams of fiber per 1,000 calories of food they eat. For everyone who eats around 2,000 calories, this is 28 grams of fiber a day, which meets most recommended daily requirements.

Unfortunately, most people don’t find it easy to get the recommended daily fiber intake. In fact, about 90% of women and 97% of men do not eat the recommended amount of fiber every day. Fruit and vegetables are a good fiber source, but 85% of adults do not eat the recommended daily amount.

These two statistics seem to indicate that people do not eat enough from the types of fresh food that would help them achieve a diet that corresponds to the fiber goals.

The amount of fiber intake per day per sex and age group, as recommended by the Department of Agriculture (USDA), is displayed in the following table.

Daily fiber recommendations
Age (years) Daily calories Daily fiber (g)
Women
2-3 1000 14
4-8 1200 20
9-13 1600 25
14-18 1800 31
19-30 2000 34
31-50 1800 31
51+ 1800 28
Men
2-3 1000 14
4-8 1200 17
9-13 1600 22
14-18 1800 25
19-30 2000 28
31-50 1800 25
51+ 1800 22

A note on gender and sexual minology

Very health recognizes that sex and gender are related concepts, but not the same. To reflect on our sources, this article uses terms such as “female”, “male”, “woman” and “man” when the sources use them.

Advantages of fiber

The reason why there is such a focus on the right amount of daily fiber is that there is so many advantages for general health.

An extensive meta -analysis of 185 studies showed that people who ate the highest fiber boundary (between 25 and 29 g) had less likely certain conditions than those who ate the lowest amount of fiber. The acceptance of the persecuted conditions was between 15% and 30%. Some of the conditions were:

The food of a variety of foods with a high fiber also benefits the following:

  • Intestinal microbioma (the community of microbes that live in their intestine)
  • Colon
  • Chronic constipation
  • Lower blood cholesterol level, Specifically low dense lipoprotein (LDL) mirror
  • A feeling of abundance and possible weight loss

Effects of too little fiber

A small amount of fiber in the diet could lead to some health effects.

The diet can significantly influence digestion. For some people, too few fiber can lead to diet:

How to increase the fiber intake

According to the understanding of how important fiber is for health, some people may want to increase their fiber intake. This includes adding more fibrous foods to nutrition or taking fiber preparations. Fillers can be found in plant -based, including fruit, vegetables, seeds, nuts and whole grain products.

Fiber should gradually be added to nutrition over time in order to reduce the potential for side effects such as intestinal bloating and gas.

Here are some foods that are higher in fiber:

  • 1 cup of cooked lentils: 15.6 g
  • 1 cup of cooked split heritage: 8.3 g
  • 1 cup of cooked black beans: 15 g
  • 1 cup of cooked Pint beans: 15 g
  • 1 cup of cooked kidney beans: 11 g
  • 1 cup of cooked edamame: 5.2 g
  • 1 cup of cooked chickpeas: 12.5 g
  • 1 ounce dried chia seeds: 9.8 g
  • 1 medium apple with skin: 4.8 g
  • 1 cup of raspberries: 9.8 g
  • 1 avocado: 13.5 g

Fiber preparations are another way to increase the fiber intake. However, not every fiber works for every person. It may be necessary to try out different types of fiber preparations to learn which works well for digestion and does not cause undesirable effects.

The three types of fiber preparations have a main component of psyllium, methylcellulose or polycarbophil.

If possible, the best idea is to get fiber out of your diet. It is also important to carefully read labels on fiber preparations. Some formulations may have additives such as artificial sugar, which in some people can also lead to digestive symptoms.

A word of very well

It is important to gradually increase the fiber over the course of a few weeks. In addition to the gradual increase in your fiber intake, you also pay your fluid intake. Adding more fiber without more water can actually worsen constipation.

Elizabeth Barnes, RDN

Summary

It is important to include fiber -containing foods in nutrition. This can mean eating fruit and vegetables as well as not sophisticated grains. Most adults in western countries do not receive enough fiber, which could increase the risk of certain health states.

Adding higher fiber foods to nutrition can increase the fiber. Fiber should be slowly added to avoid gas and flatulence. People with health conditions or illnesses that restrict some foods may want to work with a health service provider to create a diet plan that meets all nutritional needs.

HELWELL HEALTH only uses high -quality sources, including studies assessed by experts, to support the facts in our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we check our content facts and keep our content precisely, reliably and trustworthy.
  1. US Agriculture Ministry and US Ministry of Health and Human Services. Nutrition guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025. 9. Edition.

  2. US Agriculture Ministry. How much (dietary) fiber should I eat?

  3. Reynolds A, man J, Cummings J, Winter N, Mete E, Te Morenga L. Carbohydrate quality and human health: a number of systematic reviews and meta -analyzes. lancet. 2019; 393: 434-445. DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736 (18) 31809-9

  4. Gaesser Ga. Whole grain products, refined grains and risk of cancer: a systematic review of the meta -analyzes of observation studies. Nutrients. 2020; 12: 3756. DOI: 10.3390/Nu12123756

  5. Wilson As, Koller Kr, Ramaboli Mc, et al. Diet and the human intestinal microbioma: an international review. Dig Dis Sci. 2020; 65: 723-740. DOI: 10.1007/S10620-020-06112-W

  6. Bellini M., Tonarelli S., Barracca F. et al. Chronic constipation: Is a nutritional approach reasonable? Nutrients. 2021; 13: 3386. DOI: 10.3390/NU13103386

  7. Soliman ga. Food fibers, atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases. Nutrients. 2019; 11: 1155. Doi: 10.3390/Nu11051155

  8. Evans Cel. Dietoner and cardiovascular health: a review of the current evidence and guidelines. Proc Nutr SoC. 2020; 79: 61-67. DOI: 10.1017/S0029665119000673.

  9. Harvard Health publishing. Food high in fiber: Increase your health with fiber -rich foods.

  10. Lambeau KV, MCroror JW JR. Fiber preparations and clinically proven health advantages: How to recognize and recommend effective fiber therapy. J Bin Assoc Hospital Sister Practification. 2017; 29: 216-223. DOI: 10.1002/2327-6924.12447

  11. USDA FoodData Central. Linsen, mature seeds, cooked, cooked, without salt.

  12. USDA FoodData Central. Peas, shared, ripe seeds, cooked, cooked, without salt.

  13. USDA FoodData Central. Beans, black, mature seeds, cooked, cooked, without salt.

  14. USDA FoodData Central. Beans, pinto, mature seeds, cooked, cooked, without salt.

  15. USDA FoodData Central. Beans, kidney, all types, mature seeds, cooked, cooked, with salt.

  16. USDA FoodData Central. Edamame, frozen, prepared.

  17. USDA FoodData Central. Chickpeas (chickpea beans, Bengalian gram), ripe seeds, cooked, cooked, without salt.

  18. USDA FoodData Central. Seeds, chia seeds, dried.

  19. USDA FoodData Central. Apple, raw.

  20. USDA FoodData Central. Raspberries, raw.

  21. USDA FoodData Central. Avocados, raw.

Amber J. Tesca

By Amber J. Tesca

Tesca is a writer and speaker who covers digestive conditions, including IBD. At the age of 16, ulcerative colitis was diagnosed.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *