Are you adding fibre to your khichdi, chapattis, biscuits or cereals? Think a little before you do that. Is fibre good? Yes, it is. But will it help you reduce your body fat, improve your metabolism, prevent diabetes, cholesterol, blood pressure problems and heart disease, as the glib marketers claim? Hmmm.... The truth is, all metabolic disorders or obesity-related conditions are based on more than one factor. Some of these are: food, exercise, sleep, relationships, genetics and lifestyle stress. So be it cholesterol, diabetes or reducing body fat, adding fibre to your life without addressing these problems won’t get you anywhere. In fact, it may take you even closer to the disease that’s bothering you.
Fibre is integral to digesting meals well, assimilating nutrients and excreting waste products. But it’s best to encounter it through foods that naturally contain it, such as grains, pulses, sprouts, vegetables, fruits, rather than adding dollops of extra fibre to your atta.
My one big reason for saying that is: zinc. Zinc is a micronutrient our body needs. It plays a critical role in synthesising Insulin Degrading Enzyme (IDE), which keeps our insulin in balance. Adding excessive amounts of fibre to our meals reduces our ability to absorb zinc and synthesise ide. Often it is the very people to whom fibre is aggressively marketed for its claimed health benefits who need to worry about their insulin levels; they suffer from a condition called hyperinsulinemia, commonly associated with diabetes and weight gain.
Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not advocating that you should switch to maida instead of eating wheat, which has plenty of natural fibre. Eat fibre-rich foods, they are good for you—but stay clear of fibre ‘enriched’ breads and cereals. As for biscuits, eat the ones you love, rather than the fibre-enriched ones that you think are ‘healthier’. And remember: If you really want to lose weight, you shouldn’t be eating biscuits at all.
(A fortnightly column on nutrition and fitness by the best-selling author of Don’t Lose Your Mind, Lose Your Weight)
