Fiber: A Spotlight on Soluble

The USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend adults consume about 30 grams of total fiber daily – at least 5 to 10 grams of that should come from soluble fiber sources. Soluble fiber can help to reduce the risk of heart disease and diabetes.
 
Soluble fiber lowers LDL cholesterol by forming a gel during digestion, which helps to trap and remove cholesterol from the body lowering blood levels. High levels of LDL cholesterol can accumulate along your vessel walls, this is called plaque and makes it harder for your body to pump blood to your organs.

Soluble fiber also causes food to move more slowly through the digestive tract. This supports a gradual release of sugar into our blood and helps to reduce blood sugar spikes. 
  
Include More Soluble Fiber in your Diet:

• 1 cup cooked oatmeal provides 1 gram 
• ½ cup of pinto beans adds 1 gram
• ½ an avocado offers 1 gram
• 1 orange provides roughly 2 grams
• 1 cup of cooked broccoli adds 3 grams

Everyday foods can help you meet recommendations - the above example provides 8 grams soluble fiber. 

REFERENCES
Abutair AS, Naser IA, Hamed AT. Soluble fibers from psyllium improve glycemic response and body weight among diabetes type 2 patients (randomized control trial). Nutrition Journal. 2016;15(1): 86. 
Li, BW, Andrews KW, Pehrsson PR. Individual sugars, soluble, and insoluble dietary fiber contents of 70 high consumption foods. Journal of Food Composition and Analysis. 2002;15: 715-723. 
Tosh SM, Bordenave N. Emerging science on benefits of whole grain oat and barley and their soluble dietary fibers for heart health, glycemic response, and gut microbiota. Nutrition Reviews. 2020;78(1): 13-20. 
U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Nutritional goals for age-sex groups. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025. 2020; 9:101.  
US Department of Health and Human Services. Your Guide to Lowering Your Cholesterol With Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes. National Institutes of Health. 2005; 27.   

By Sophie Walton, MS, MGH Dietetic Intern