TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – As many as 95.5 percent of Indonesians consume less fiberaccording to 2018 Basic Health Research. In fact, fiber is one of the nutrients the body needs to stay healthy.
Clinical nutrition specialist Cindy J. Pudjiadi said the average fiber requirement of each person is between 25 grams to 30 grams a day. This fiber is divided into two, namely: soluble fiber and insoluble fiber. Each type of fiber has different benefits.
Soluble fiber, for example, will undergo fermentation in the intestine to produce short chain fatty acids. These fatty acids are very important for health intestines, apart from good germs. “If there is no soluble fiber, there will be no fermentation,” said Cindy at the Nutren Fibre virtual press conference “Ready to Return to a Normal Routine with a Healthy Digestion” held Tuesday, March 29, 2022.
The insoluble fiber helps constipation problems or difficult bowel movements.
In addition, the rare benefits of fiber are that it helps maintain blood fat levels, especially LDL (low-density lipoprotein) or bad cholesterol, and helps stabilize blood sugar.
Another benefit of fiber is that it helps maintain a healthy weight. According to a small study conducted over a period of one month, people who replaced their breakfast and dinner with fiber-rich nutritional supplements experienced improvements in their body mass index, especially fat percentage.
“Body fat is the most important role in increasing the risk of all kinds of diseases. If fat goes down, the risk of disease will also decrease,” said the doctor who practices at Medistra Hospital, Brawijaya RSIA, and Bunda Jakarta RSIA.
He also revealed the results of other studies on fiber consumption. In that study, researchers compared the intestines that did not consume fiber and those who consumed fiber. As a result, the intestines that do not consume fiber are known to be perforated, which means there is none barrier or outer layer. As a result, disease germs will be easier to enter.
“If there is fiber supported by enough vitamins and minerals, barrier This can be maintained so that virus attacks don’t enter easily,” he added.
Cindy said that busyness can also affect a person’s fiber intake. When busy, most people don’t pay attention to their nutrition. Eating rice with a side dish, without vegetables, is considered sufficient.
Apart from vegetables, fiber is also found in complex carbohydrates such as oats and oatmeal, and nuts. But for those who are busy and don’t have time to eat it, Cindy says fiber needs can be met by consuming fiber-rich nutrients at breakfast and dinner.
Also read: The Reason Eating Enough Fiber Is The Key To Aging Healthy
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