How Fiber Benefits Your Body
Like other carbohydrates, fiber is made up of many glucose molecules. However, fiber doesn't break down into glucose before it gets to the colon, and may not be digested there either. Here's what fiber does inside the human body and the benefits this can provide.
Fiber and the Digestive Tract
To understand the role that fiber plays in health, it's helpful to look at how it acts as it works its way through the digestive tract.
The Stomach
Insoluble fiber—which is found in wheat bran, beans, and nuts—isn't broken down easily in our digestive tract. It also tends to move out of the stomach quickly, unless there is fat, protein, or soluble fiber to slow it down.
Conversely, soluble fibers (such as peas, oats, and citrus fruit) slow stomach emptying, particularly when consumed with lots of fluid and some fat. This tends to promote feelings of fullness or satiety. It can also decrease the glycemic effect of a meal.
The Small Intestine
The small intestine has three main functions with regard to fiber. They are to move the fiber toward the colon, to start to reduce larger molecules into smaller ones, and to absorb the fiber-containing food's nutrients through the intestinal wall.
As far as how fiber moves through the small intestine, it's a similar situation as in the stomach. The presence of insoluble fiber tends to speed up "transit time" while soluble fiber (which turns into a gel-like substance during digestion) adds bulk.
The Colon
In the colon, fiber becomes a sort of "scrub brush," helping to clean out any buildup and bacteria, and contributing to greater colon health. It also helps keep your stools soft, providing both regular and easier waste elimination.
The Gut Microbiome and Fiber
The organs involved with food digestion (the stomach and intestines) are often referred to as the gut microbiome. Within this microbiome exists between 300 and 500 species of bacteria, providing a total of almost two million genes.
When dietary fiber is consumed, the microbes in the gut use it to produce short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs). These SCFAs are then absorbed by the body, where they either act as a catalyst for another microbe or help regulate the metabolic process.
Evidence is building that SCFAs are important in keeping the colon healthy and preventing conditions such as ulcerative colitis, colon cancer, and diverticular disease. They may also help regulate cholesterol and, to some extent, insulin responses.
Additional Fiber Benefits
Besides reducing the glycemic effect of meals and contributing to colon health, there is further evidence that fiber may benefit us in other ways. It seems to help lower cholesterol and triglycerides, for instance. It may also help prevent and/or treat:
- Certain types of cancer, especially colon cancer
- Type 2 diabetes
- Heart disease
- Ulcers, particularly in the beginning of the small intestine (duodenal ulcers)
Types of Fiber That Feed a Healthy Gut
Different types of fiber provide a wider variety of "bacteria food." This, in turn, produces different kinds of short-chain fatty acids and other health-promoting products, so it's important to get a variety of fibers in our foods.
The fiber types that are most amenable to fermentation are the soluble ones (e.g., gums, pectins). These are found in berries, beans, flaxseed, plums, apples, and oats, as well as in some fiber supplements, such as those using psyllium and guar gum. Smoothies, which you can make at home with a blender, can offer fiber. Gluten free snacks can also be rich sources of fiber.
Insoluble fiber (found in such foods as vegetables, the bran of grains; e.g., wheat bran, nuts, and seeds) isn't available for much fermentation. But it is still important in the colon.
Because of its tendency to "speed things along," fermentation of insoluble fibers takes place along the entire length of the colon—including near the colon's end, where the majority of colon cancers occur. Without insoluble fiber, most of the fermentation would take place at the top of the colon, reducing this benefit.
A Word From Verywell
Fiber's trek through the digestive tract offers many benefits, with both soluble and insoluble forms important to overall health. If you aren't sure how to best incorporate more fiber into your diet, working with a dietitian or nutritionist may help.
Rebello C, O'Neil C, Greenway F. Dietary fiber and satiety: the effects of oats on satiety. Nutr Rev. 2016;74(2):131-147. doi:10.1093/nutrit/nuv063
Chutkan R, Fahey G, Wright W, McRorie J. Viscous versus nonviscous soluble fiber supplements: mechanisms and evidence for fiber-specific health benefits. J Am Acad Nurse Practition. 2012;24(8):476-487. doi:10.1111/j.1745-7599.2012.00758.x
Taghipoor M, Barles G, Georgelin C, Licois J, Lescoat P. Digestion modeling in the small intestine: impact of dietary fiber. Mathemat Biosci. 2014;258:101-112. doi:10.1016/j.mbs.2014.09.011
University of California San Francisco Benioff Children's Hospitals. Why fiber is so good for you.
Quigley E. Gut bacteria in health and disease. Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2013;9(9):560-569.
Myhrstad M, Tunsjo H, Charnock C, Telle-Hansen V. Dietary fiber, gut microbiota, and metabolic regulation—current status in human randomized trials. Nutrients. 2020;12(3):859. doi:10.3390/nu12030859
Blaak EE, Canfora EE, Theis S, et al. Short chain fatty acids in human gut and metabolic health. Benef Microbes. 2020;11(5):411-455. doi:10.3920/BM2020.0057
Chambers ES, Preston T, Frost G, Morrison DJ. Role of gut microbiota-generated short-chain fatty acids in metabolic and cardiovascular health. Curr Nutr Rep. 2018;7(4):198-206. doi:10.1007/s13668-018-0248-8
Surampudi P, Enkhmaa B, Anuurad E, Berglund L. Lipid lowering with soluble dietary fiber. Curr Atheroscler Rep. 2016;18(12):75. doi:10.1007/s11883-016-0624-z
Hullings AG, Sinha R, Liao LM, Freedman ND, Graubard BI, Loftfield E. Whole grain and dietary fiber intake and risk of colorectal cancer in the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study cohort. Am J Clin Nutr. 2020;112(3):603-612. doi:10.1093/ajcn/nqaa161
Post RE, Mainous AG, King DE, Simpson KN. Dietary fiber for the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus: a meta-analysis. J Am Board Fam Med. 2012;25(1):16-23. doi:10.3122/jabfm.2012.01.110148
McRae MP. Dietary fiber is beneficial for the prevention of cardiovascular disease: an umbrella review of meta-analyses. J Chiropr Med. 2017;16(4):289-299. doi:10.1016/j.jcm.2017.05.005
Vomero ND, Colpo E. Nutritional care in peptic ulcer. Arq Bras Cir Dig. 2014;27(4):298-302. doi:10.1590/S0102-67202014000400017
Singh V, Yeoh B, Chassaing B, et al. Dysregulated microbial fermentation of soluble fiber induces cholestatic liver cancer. Cell. 2018;175(3):679-694.e22. doi:10.1016/j.cell.2018.09.004
American Society of Colon & Rectal Surgeons. Colon cancer.