2019-05-01_Healthy_Food_Guide_UK

Thehigh-fibrefactor
Thestudyfindingsreinforceearlierconclusionson
thebeneficialeffectsofa traditionalMediterranean
diet,withitsemphasisonfruitandvegetables,
wholegrains,legumes,nutsandoliveoil.
A reviewbythePopulationHealthResearch
InstituteinHamilton,Canadaconcludeda
Med-styledietwasmostlikelytoprotectagainst
coronaryheartdisease.AnotherUSstudy
foundthatanunrestricted-calorieMedDiet,with
nutsoroliveoil,couldcuttheriskofheartattacks
orstrokesby30%inthoseathighriskofheart
disease, compared with a control group.

W

hentheWorldHealthOrganization
(WHO)publishesa newhealthand
dietstudy,theworldlistens.Its
latest,publishedinTheLancet,
highlightsthelinkbetweenfibre
andhearthealth.Thestudylookedathealthypeople
in 250 trialsover 40 yearsandconcludedthateating
morewholegrainsandfewerrefinedcarbohydrates
is key.Thosepeoplewhoatethehighestamountof
fibresawa 15–30%decreaseintheirchancesof
dyingfromheartdisease.Notonlythat,buttheyalso
hada reducedincidenceofcoronaryheartdisease
andstroke,type2 diabetesandcolorectalcancer.
Fibre,traditionallya marginalconsideration
comparedwithfatandsaltconsumptionwhenit
comestohearthealth,is nowconfirmedasjustas
important.Thestudyalsohighlightstheshortcomings
oflow-carbandzero-carbdietsastheylackimportant
nutrients.‘It’sa wake-upcall,’saysnutritioneditor
AmandaUrsell.‘IntheUK,onaverage,adultsare
gettingjust18ga day,whenweshouldhave 30g.’

Whyarewefallingshort?
It’snowonderwe’restrugglingtomeetfibretargets.
A nationwidestudybyRyvitafoundthat65%ofBrits
didn’tevenknowthe30gdailytargetexisted.Onein
10 couldn’tnamea high-fibrefood– manymistakenly
believingchicken,eggsandicecreamcounted.
What’smore,42%ofpeoplesurveyeddidn’teat
a singlepieceoffruitorportionofvegeveryday.
RyvitanutritionistLilySouttersays,‘Whileawareness
is growing,there’sclearlya lotofconfusionabout
whyweneedfibreandwhatfoodswegetit from.’
Toencouragepeopletoeatmorefibre,Ryvitahas
teamedupwithDavinaMcCallto launch its FibreFit
challenge (go to ryvita.co.uk).

Sohowmuchfibreshouldweeat?

Thegoodnewsis that,forevery8gextrafibre

weeata day,theWHOreviewfoundtotaldeaths

andincidenceofcoronaryheartdiseases,

cardiovasculardisease,type2 diabetesand

colorectalcancerdecreasedbybetween5%and

27%.Riskofstrokeandbreastcanceralsodecreased.

Consuming25–29gfibrea daywasfoundtobe

adequate,butTheLancetdatasuggestshigher

fibreintakescouldprovideevengreaterprotection.

Forevery15gincreaseinwholegrainseatena day,

deathsandincidencesofcoronaryheartdisease,

type2 diabetesandcolorectalcancerfellby2%to

19%.Eatingmorewholegrainswasalsoassociated

witha 13%to33%reductioninnon-communicable

disease(NCD)risks.Thiscoversthingslike

osteoporosis,Alzheimer’sand autoimmune

diseases,forexample.

‘Therearemanypositiveeffectsofeatingfibre,’

saysTracyParker,seniordietitianwiththeBritish

HeartFoundation.‘Forexample,solublefibrefound

inoatsandpulseshelpstolowerbloodcholesterol

andreleasescarbohydratesata slowerrate,helping

withbloodsugarcontrol.Whatthisresearchshows

is thatit’snotjustoneingredientthat’sprotective –

it’smorethesumoftheparts,’shesays.

Tracysuggestsswappingwhitebread,riceor

pastaforbrownvarietiesandeatingatleastfive

portionsoffruitandvega dayfora fastfibreboost.

‘Othertipsincludesubstitutinghalfthemeatmince

ina recipeforlentilsorbeans. ‘These small changes

alladdup,’shesays.

Thebiggerpicture

A lackoffibremaybeoneofa newgeneration

offactorsthataffectourriskofheartdisease.

KeithFrayn,emeritusprofessorofhuman

metabolism,UniversityofOxford,andchair

oftheBritishNutritionFoundation’sTaskForce,

says:‘Conventionallifestyle-relatedriskfactors

forcardiovasculardiseaseincludesmoking,raised

cholesterolandbloodpressure,lackofphysical

activity,obesityanddiabetes.However,these

“classical”factorscan’tfullyexplaindifferences

incardiovasculardiseaserisk;andemerging

evidencesuggeststhatothernovel risk factors

mayplayanimportantrole.’

A newreportpublishedbytheTaskForcepoints

tohowthefermentationoffibrebyourgutbacteria

mayalsoinfluenceourriskofheartdisease.Sara

Stanner,BNFsciencedirectorandeditorofthe

TaskForcereport,says:‘Eatingplentyoffruitand

vegetables,choosinghigh-fibreorwholegrain

varietiesofstarchycarbohydratesandeatingplenty

ofpulses,likebeans,peasandlentils,willcontribute

tofibreintakes,andcanhelptokeepyourgut

healthy and decrease your risk of heart disease.’

25%

ofall

deathsin

theUKare

causedby

heartand

circulatory

diseases

1 in 7

menand

1 in 12

women

diefrom

coronary

heart

disease

£

billion

eachyear

isspenton

healthcare

relatingto

heartand

circulatory

diseases

Newresearchlinksa healthierheartwitha very

simpledietarychoice:eatingenoughfibre.Sowhy

dosomanyofusfallshortofourdailyfibretarget?

Welookathowtodetermineif you’regetting

enough – and easy ways to make sure you do

Health

MAY 2019HEALTHY FOOD GUIDE 17