Welcome to Nutrition Stories, a series exploring hot topics in nutrition and dietetics! Today’s guest is Courtney Sroka, a student in the UF Didactic Program in Dietetics (DPD) in the Food Science and Human Nutrition program at The University of Florida. In this video, Courtney shares the health benefits of consuming fiber and how we can increase the amount of this carbohydrate in our diets.

Courtney: Many of us have struggled with being hungry after eating. What can be done to avoid this post-eating hunger? Enter fiber, a category of carbohydrates found in plants.¹

Fiber can not only help increasing satiety–the satisfied feeling of fullness after eating–but it can also support overall wellness. Yet only an estimated 5% of Americans meet their recommended fiber goals.² Fortunately, adding it to our diets is possible with some dietary changes. As discussed below, adding foods like chia seeds, leafy greens, whole grains, or apples and oranges can help make our health goals more attainable. Challenge yourself to try one new source of fiber this week!

Remember, when making these additions, it’s not a race! Slowly adding in high fiber foods will reduce the risk of bloating or gastric discomfort caused by a sudden increase.¹ While exact values for how much to increase fiber intake are usually not provided, recommendations typically suggest increasing intake gradually over a few weeks.³ Going at your own pace when making these changes is best! Furthermore, drinking an ample amount of water while increasing intake of this carbohydrate enhances the benefits for your digestive system.^1,4 Current recommendations suggest drinking eight ounces of water with fiber sources, while also making sure to drink at least six to eight glasses of water throughout the day.⁵

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