.png)
Morning routines have the capacity to set the tone for the day both emotionally and physically. Your morning food choices are especially important because they influence the quality of your energy, the stability of your mood and intensity of sugar cravings. The simple addition of fiber in the form of flax seeds, chia seeds, hemp seeds or even vegetables to your morning meal positively affects all 3 while also offering huge health benefits (and a little regularity too !). While there’s no shortage of research validating fiber’s capacity to benefit health, I have outlined the top reasons your “fight to increase fiber” in your day will be worth it:
HEART HEALTH
A comprehensive 2014 meta-analysis concluded a strong inverse relationship between fiber intake and heart attack. By including a mere 25 grams of fiber into the diet daily (as reference: 1 T flax = 8 g fiber), studies indicate a 40 percent decrease in the risk of heart disease. As more fuel to the “fiber flame,” every seven grams of fiber consumed on a daily basis decreases stroke risk by 7 percent. Falling in love with fiber yet? Read on…
BLOOD SUGAR CONTROL:
Fiber also has the capacity to mediate the impact of carbohydrates on blood sugar levels. This is why unprocessed fiber-rich foods such as seeds, legumes and vegetables keep blood sugar levels stable while processed grains and refined sugars (stripped of their natural fiber), spike blood sugar levels. Including fiber rich foods into the life daily may stabilize energy, mood and cravings as a reflection of stable blood sugar levels.
WEIGHT LOSS:
Last but not least, fiber has been shown to enhance weight loss due to its impact on satiety. When fiber is eaten at the beginning of a meal, the resultant feeling of fullness will help to prevent overconsumption equating to a more optimized caloric intake. For instance, if you tried eating 5 sweet potatoes (with the skin) vs 5 cups of sweet potato fries, the fiber in the skin of the sweet potato would induce a feeling of fullness long before you had filled your quota on sweet potato fries.
If you have “fallen in love” with the WHOLESOME HABIT: fiber first, indulge in some simple tips for including flax, chia and hemp seeds into breakfast. Once you enter your information below, I’ll send the tool straight to your inbox so that you can jump on the fiber Farrari first thing tomorrow morning!