{"id":10277,"date":"2019-07-03T08:21:44","date_gmt":"2019-07-03T08:21:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/?p=10277"},"modified":"2025-01-21T07:58:59","modified_gmt":"2025-01-21T05:58:59","slug":"what-is-fibre-and-why-is-it-important","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/nutrition-blog\/what-is-fibre-and-why-is-it-important\/","title":{"rendered":"What is fibre and why is it important?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The term \u2018dietary fibre\u2019 refers to the indigestible carbohydrates found in fruit, vegetables, grains and nuts. Dietary fibre in not sound in meat and dairy products. Functional fibre consists of non-digestible <a href=\"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/blog\/simple-complex-carbohydrates\/\">carbohydrates<\/a> that have beneficial physiological effects. The term \u2018total fibre\u2019 refers to dietary and functional fibre.<\/p>\n<h2>Insoluble and soluble fibre<\/h2>\n<p>Fibre can be split into two groups:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Insoluble fibre, and<\/li>\n<li>Soluble fibre.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Both forms of fibre are not absorbed into the bloodstream and so are excreted from the body. The body needs both of these sources to ensure optimum health.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What is insoluble fibre?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Insoluble fibre has the following characteristics:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>It is not soluble in water.<\/li>\n<li>It helps to move bulk through the digestive system.<\/li>\n<li>Insoluble fibre helps the intestines to balance PH levels.<\/li>\n<li>Insoluble fibre helps to promote regular bowel movements.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This type of fibre is found in wholewheat and grain bread, whole bran cereal, flaxseed, as well as the skins of <a href=\"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/blog\/dangers-of-eating-too-much-fruit\/\">fruits<\/a> and vegetables.<\/p>\n<p>Fruits and vegetables are rich in nutrients. Many are excellent sources of vitamin A, vitamin C, folate and potassium. They are also low in fat and sodium.<\/p>\n<p>The Food Pyramid suggests between three and five servings of vegetables each day. One serving of vegetables can be:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>One cup of raw leafy vegetables<\/li>\n<li>Half a cup of other cooked or raw vegetables<\/li>\n<li>Three quarters of a cup of vegetable juice<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In addition, the <a href=\"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/blog\/food-pyramid-vs-food-plate\/\">Food Pyramid<\/a> suggests two to four servings of fruit each day. One serving of fruit can be:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>One medium apple, orange or banana<\/li>\n<li>Half a cup of chopped cooked or canned fruit<\/li>\n<li>Three quarters of a cup of fruit juice<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Remember that you can only count 100% fruit juice as a fruit. You need to limit juice consumption. Most commercially-bottle juices come in containers that hold more than two servings of fruit that can add a lot of sugar and calories to your daily diet.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-10286 size-shop_single\" src=\"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/shutterstock_300165296-600x400.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/p>\n<h2><strong>What is soluble fibre?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Soluble fibre has the following characteristics:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>It can be dissolved in water.<\/li>\n<li>Soluble fibre forms a gel-like substance when it\u2019s mixed with liquid.<\/li>\n<li>It binds fatty acids.<\/li>\n<li>Soluble fibre prolongs stomach emptying so that sugar is absorbed and released slowly.<\/li>\n<li>It helps to lower cholesterol levels.<\/li>\n<li>Soluble fibre helps to regulate blood sugar levels.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This type of fibre is found in oats, apples, pears, peas and barley.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What is the Glycaemic Index?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>One of the benefits of soluble fibre is that it slows down the absorption rate of <a href=\"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/blog\/eating-sugary-foods-before-event-hurt-athlete-performance\/\">sugar<\/a>. The result of this is that you feel fuller for longer and this prevents you from snacking in order so that you can top up your energy levels.<\/p>\n<p>Soluble fibre foods are usually those which are complex carbohydrates. These types of foods are high in sugars but take a long time to absorb and digest. This means that they keep the blood sugar level and insulin stable. This enhances glycogen synthesis activity and increases glycogen storage. Complex <a href=\"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/blog\/simple-complex-carbohydrates\/\">carbohydrates<\/a> contain polysaccharides which are composed of many glucose units They are often referred to as starches which are found in vegetables, fruit and grains.<\/p>\n<p>A good way to determine whether or not you\u2019re choosing the right type of carbohydrate for your body is to look at the glycaemic index: the higher the food is on this index, the worse it is for you. Conversely, the lower the score the food has on the GI Index, the better it is for you.<\/p>\n<h2><a href=\"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/contact-us\/\">Contact Trifocus Fitness Academy<\/a><\/h2>\n<p>Choosing the right food for you doesn\u2019t have to be a challenge. All you need to know are good nutritional principles and, if you stick to them, you\u2019ll be on the road to good health! Trifocus Fitness Academy\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/courses\/specialised-nutrition\/\">Specialised Nutrition Course<\/a> is the perfect way for you to learn about these good food habits. For more information, visit our <a href=\"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/courses\/specialised-nutrition\/\">website<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/Trifocus fitness academy - design a nutritional plan\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-5270 size-shop_single\" src=\"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/footer3-1-600x96.jpg\" alt=\"Trifocus fitness academy nutrition course registration\" width=\"600\" height=\"96\" srcset=\"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/footer3-1-600x96.jpg 600w, https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/footer3-1-300x48.jpg 300w, https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/footer3-1-768x123.jpg 768w, https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/footer3-1-1024x164.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/footer3-1.jpg 1250w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Trifocus Fitness Academy - Specialised Nutrition Certification\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/WYimvw3aY-s?start=9&#038;feature=oembed&#038;enablejsapi=1&#038;origin=https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The term \u2018dietary fibre\u2019 refers to the indigestible carbohydrates found in fruit, vegetables, grains and nuts. Dietary fibre in not sound in meat and dairy products. Functional fibre consists of non-digestible carbohydrates that have beneficial physiological effects. The term \u2018total fibre\u2019 refers to dietary and functional fibre. Insoluble and soluble fibre Fibre can be split&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":10287,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"rank_math_lock_modified_date":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2120],"tags":[2353],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10277"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10277"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10277\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39235,"href":"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10277\/revisions\/39235"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10287"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10277"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10277"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trifocusfitnessacademy.co.za\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10277"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}