Fiber's Dark Side
By NESITA KWAN
Updated 9:31 PM EST, Tue, Mar 24, 2009
Putting more fiber rich foods in your diet may have a dark side. Doctors know that fiber foods improve cholesterol levels, digestion and help type-two diabetics to control their glucose level.
But high fiber diets also can rob the body of calcium, according to researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.
"Because more calcium equals better bone health, we recommend that people on high fiber diets talk to their physician about increasing their dietary calcium as well, in order to get the most benefit from both," said Dr. Abhimanyu Garg, who discovered the connection.
Dietary fiber is the indigestible portion of plant foods that push other food through the digestive system. It's mostly in fruits and vegetables. Foods that have both fiber and calcium include spinach, broccoli, figs, artichoke, beans and turnip greens.
First Published: Mar 24, 2009 10:21 AM EST
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