Roughage is the term that we usually give to fiber. Fiber is dietary material from plants that is difficult for the body to digest. Roughage definitely helps constipation. Most foods that we consume these days are very low in fiber. There are two main types of fiber.
They are soluble fiber and insoluble fiber. Soluble fiber is easier to break down and it is found in foods like beans, apples, oats, etc. Insoluble fiber is usually mostly past out, but insoluble fiber isnt as useless as you might think.
Insoluble fiber gives healthy texture to our stool. It also acts as a diluting agent for all the waste products carried in our feices reducing their effect on the colon wall.
A diet rich in fiber, both soluble and insoluble, will help a great deal in digestion. Which makes bowel movements a lot easier and gets rid of all waste products from consumption of our food.
A diet low in fiber, however, could cause a disorder called Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS).Symptoms of IBS include: abdominal pain, mucus and(or) blood in stool, depression, muscle and joint pain, headaches, anxiety, diarrhea directly following constipation, feelings of being bloated and abdominal cramps. This disorder most commonly goes away then comes back again just as sever as it was before.
20% of all our population has had, or will have IBS at some point of their life, as a result of not taking in enough fiber. Of course, the symptoms may differ from person to person. Treatment of IBS is not very difficult to find, just eat foods that are high in fiber, and you shouldnt have any more problems with IBS. You should seek treatment before it gets worse.
If you realize that you may have it, its not a very good idea to let it go very long untreated. The best thing that you should do if you think you may have IBS is the next meal you should try to eat more beans (cooked with skin),yams, gari, corn on the cob, potatoes with the skin, lots of vegetables, or fruits. These are a few names of food that are very high in fiber.
Fiber also aids in the treatment of diabetes y helping to reduce rate at which glucose (sugar)is released from digested food, into the bloodstream. This helps temperate the requirement for insulin. The more fibre in your diet, the lower glycemic index of that food.
Fiber also helps to excrete fat from the body. aiding in diets promoting weight loss. Here are some tips for increasing dietary fiber: eat bread with beans instead of eggs, add beans to your rice or plantain or yam. Eat your rice with vegetables. eat your potatoes with the skin.
For snacks, nibble on carrots, or apples or pineapple. When you eat oranges, eat the flesh inside of the orange. Don't just suck it and throw it away. Slice cabbage and carrots into your rice, pasta, or macaroni when cooking them. If you like salads, you should make sure to include it with your meals regularly.
Before I started writing this article, I had no idea how important fiber, both soluble and insoluble, was to a healthy diet. Needless-to-say, it will be included in my day to day diet. And to answer the question in the title of this article, Does roughage help or hinder constipation?" The answer is " It most definitely helps."
Thanks for reading and may God bless you always, and always. |
