Understanding Fiber Supplements

Dietary fiber is probably best known for its ability to prevent or relieve constipation. Fiber supplements and foods containing fiber can provide other health benefits as well, such as helping to maintain a healthy weight and lowering your risk of diabetes and heart disease.

What is dietary fiber?

Dietary fiber, also known as roughage or bulk, includes the parts of plant foods your body can’t digest or absorb. Unlike other food components, such as fats, proteins or carbohydrates, which your body breaks down and absorbs, fiber isn’t digested by your body. Instead, it passes relatively intact through your stomach, small intestine and colon and out of your body. Fiber is either classified as soluble, which dissolves in water, or insoluble, which doesn’t dissolve.

Benefits of Fiber in your Diet

A high-fiber diet has many benefits, which include:

• Normalizes bowel movements. A bulky stool is easier to pass, reducing your chance of constipation. If you have loose, watery stools, fiber may help to solidify the stool.
• Helps maintain bowel health. A high-fiber diet may lower your risk of developing hemorrhoids and small pouches in your colon.
• Helps lower cholesterol levels. Soluble fiber, the ingredient in Guardian Fiber Capsules, may help lower total blood cholesterol levels by lowering bad cholesterol levels. Studies also have shown that high-fiber foods may have other heart-health benefits, such as reducing blood pressure and inflammation.
• Helps control blood sugar levels. For people with diabetes, fiber can slow the absorption of sugar and help improve blood sugar levels.
• Aids in achieving healthy weight. You’re likely to eat less and stay satisfied longer.