My Complicated Relationship with Fiber Over the Years
My fiber experience is complex and has evolved over many years. For example, what I thought of as fiber and where I could find it used to be quite limited. For a long time, I only knew about bread and psyllium. I expanded my diet when I learned what kinds of whole foods contain fiber. More on that later.
Fiber used to be called roughage
During my 1960s childhood, fiber was called “roughage.” Something the body couldn’t absorb, so it came out the other end. Fiber came from vegetables. A lot of kids didn’t care for vegetables. I liked them but didn’t eat a lot. My bowel output was regular and normal, so I didn’t think too much about it. Fiber seemed to be very much on the minds of food producers, however. Especially bread companies. I noticed this as a young adult in the 1970s.
Back then, when I was a bread eater, “high fiber” breads were touted as a go-to fiber source. Each slice contained 2 or 3 grams of fiber instead of just 1 in regular bread.
Bread was considered a fiber source
My family and friends discussed breads we tried. Health and taste were somewhat at odds. Price was a big factor too. The healthier the bread, the more expensive it was. Fewer ingredients + smaller portions = higher cost? That was always a head-scratcher—and still is!
Note that I didn’t mention gluten. During the 70s, 80s and 90s, that wasn’t part of the conversation. I digested bread just fine, and nobody I knew had problems with it either, so that might be why.
I don’t remember when gluten first entered the national conversation. I just know that in my circle, we weren’t aware of gluten. Psyllium seeds were heavily promoted back then too, in a form like Metamucil, a powder dissolved in water and taken as a beverage. Any time that I drank psyllium, regardless of the brand, it had no effect on my bowel. I was already regular and felt no need to keep taking it.
I rarely had flares when younger
I had never heard of IBS during those same years, though I did experience the symptoms. It flared only occasionally back then, in the form of severe gas pains and explosive diarrhea. It usually happened after eating a combination of greasy starch and gassy vegetables, such as a pizza with green peppers. Or at a cookout with baked beans, a burger, and macaroni salad. An interlude during the 1990s-early 2000s had me scratching my head yet again. Things changed, but I’d be hard pressed to explain how.
I didn’t pay much attention to changing my diet until 2016, when I was diagnosed with IBS-C and handed FODMAP diet sheets.
Since powdered fiber supplements seemed not to do anything for me, I sampled cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, bell peppers, and cabbage, as well as legumes such as kidney beans and pinto beans. Again, they caused excessive gas and loose stools, so I eliminated them. This disappointed me. I love these vegetables!
Trying vegetables, in small amounts
Determined to find a way to keep these whole foods in my diet, I started eating them in small amounts on a daily basis, gradually increasing the amount. Over time my body adjusted to them, and now I can eat lots with very few side effects. Gas does happen but not to the degree it once did. If I take several Beano tablets at the start of the meal and several at the end, it nearly eliminates gas all together. And they no longer cause loose stools. I credit having gradually increased the amount, but luck played a role as well.
Today I eat mostly raw vegetables, many that are chock full of plant protein such as tofu, spinach, broccoli, lentils, and nuts. Plus cooked veg such as chickpeas, black as well as all other beans, and Brussels sprouts. I know I’m very lucky that I can tolerate such a diet. So far, so good!
I look forward to reading your experiences with fiber, so please share! Hugs, Kim
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