Fibre
Found in a range of different foods, dietary fibre is a nutrient your body needs to function properly, especially bowel health.
Adults should aim to eat 25 to 30 grams of dietary fibre every day, from a wide variety of foods such as wholegrain breads such as mixed grain, rye, sour dough and wholemeal cereals like oats, bulgur wheat, and pearl barley, fruit, vegetables, legumes and pulses such as lentils and chickpeas.
Children aged between four and eight need a minimum of 18g of fibre each day.
This example shows how an adult can meet the required daily fibre needs.
Daily fibre plan
• 3/4 cup bran flake cereal = 4.5g
• 2 slices wholemeal bread = 4.5g
• 1 apple and 1 orange = 5.5g
• 2 cups mixed raw vegetables = 10g
• 1/4 cup baked beans = 3g
TOTAL = 27.5g
If your current diet is low in fibre, you will need to build up your intake gradually. Suddenly consuming large amounts of fibre can produce an embarrassing but common side-effect – flatulence, also known as wind. To help prevent this problem, increase your intake slowly to allow your body to adapt. Beans, in particular, have a reputation for causing wind, especially those cooked from dried legumes. To stop them causing flatulence, soak them overnight before cooking them in fresh water.
