Flutes, French Horns, and Fiber

Adding more fiber to your diet will not help the horn section play better, but it can lower your cholesterol, help stabilize blood sugars, and make you feel fuller longer, so when the trombone players are acting up, your hangry alter ego stays in check. Increasing the amount of fiber on a daily basis can easily be done with just a few minor dietary adjustments.

When discussing fiber, the two big questions are: how much and where do I get it from? As a general rule of thumb, you should aim for around 25–35 grams per day, and since fiber only occurs in plant-based foods, naturally, you will need to eat more of them. There are various breakfast bars and other products at the grocery store touting high fiber content, but these products often come with added sugar, fat, and salt and require a degree in food science to decipher what is really in them. Like the majority of processed food, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. I think it is best to forgo these products and get your fiber from whole foods. This way, you get the fiber and all the other nutrients plants contain.

If your fiber intake is low, it’s best to slowly increase the amount you are consuming. Start by adding 3-5 grams of extra fiber each day above your normal intake. As an example, if you normally get in ten grams per day, increasing it would look something like this:

Week 1: Increase to 13–15 grams per day.

Weeks 2–3: Increase to 16–18 grams per day.

Week 3–4: Increase to 19–21 grams per day.

Week 4-5: Increase to 21–24 grams per day.

You can find the fiber content of any food on the USDA website, fdc.nal.usda.gov, but here is a list of common foods and their fiber content, as well as some ideas on incorporating them into your diet.

Increasing Fiber

Add berries and pecans to all your cereal, yogurt, or breakfast smoothies ~ 9 grams.
Add ½ cup of beans to any breakfast taco, salad, or as a side to your normal lunch ~ 7 grams.
Avocado can substitute for mayonnaise on most things. ~ 5 grams
Use fruit in place of one sweet item you eat each day ~ 4 grams.
Include a side salad at all dinners ~ 8–10 grams.

Congratulations! You just improved your daily intake of fiber. Remember, healthy eating is more about improvement than perfection.

Jerry Elizondo, RD, LD, CSOWM was born and raised in central Texas. He has been a practicing dietitian for over twenty years and is a board-certified specialist in obesity and weight management. He has counseled thousands of patients preparing for bariatric surgery and is the author of Dietary Jerry’s Weight Loss Survival Guide.

Jerry and his wife, Amanda, live in Austin, where he remains an outdoor enthusiast and takes every chance he gets to go rock climbing, mountain biking, or swimming in a Texas river. instagram @dietary_jerry