It’s no secret that fiber plays a very important role for keeping your internal pipes moving regularly, your blood sugar on an even keel and your waistline smaller. But one very important feature that doesn’t get much air time is the fact that you can keep your cholesterol levels fit with fiber.
Fiber is the part of the plant that your digestive system just doesn’t breakdown. Dietary fiber comes in two different varieties, soluble or insoluble which means as the fiber passes through your digestive tract the soluble fiber dissolves in water and the insoluble fiber does not. When most people think about increasing their intake of fiber they usually are under the opinion that adding in grains, cereals or bran muffins will get the job done. The truth is that fruits, vegetables, sprouts, nuts and seeds are all loaded with dietary fiber.
Lately there’s been a great deal of scientific evidence showing that high fiber diets, especially when in scarce supply of fat, help to maintain healthy cholesterol levels and this is why:
When you consume any type of fat, your liver manufactures a fat dissolving agent known as bile. Your bile is banked in a small sack under the liver called the gall bladder. When you eat fat of any type your gall bladder releases some of its bile stores to breakdown large fat particles into smaller ones so they are easier to digest. Cholesterol is the main ingredient of bile which means the more fat you eat, the more bile you need to make and the more cholesterol the liver needs to produce. When you eat a meal high in fat the liver must manufacture and release more cholesterol into the small intestine than if you consumed a meal with a lower fat profile. This is where the fiber comes in.
Keep your Cholesterol Levels Fit with Fiber
Once your bile performs its job of breaking down the fat the cholesterol that was needed for the job must exit your body. When dietary fat is present it will bind with cholesterol and transport it out of your body. Think of it has your own personal janitorial service that shows up on the scene to mop up the leftover cholesterol and usher it off the premises. If you aren’t ingesting enough dietary fiber then “Team Fiber” is not there to escort the cholesterol out of your system. This means the cholesterol you produced to breakdown the fat ends up remaining in the blood stream where it can find its way into the basal membrane of your arteries causing inflammation and a build up of plaque. Just think of what happens when you bring in excess cholesterol from animal products coupled with not enough fiber! I call that play a double whammy!!!
So keep in mind that eating an abundance of whole plant based foods will provide you with the needed fiber to keep your cholesterol, blood sugar levels and colon in tip top shape! When you join me on my 21 Day Wellness Cleanse you naturally get to experience for your self how simple it is increase your intake of fiber for better health and wellbeing.
