This Macronutrient Lowers Cardiovascular Disease

Disclaimer: Not Medical Advice. Opinions are my own.

In partnership with ​IM8​

Today's newsletter at a glance:

• The Type of Macronutrient

• Benefits of Including Fiber in Your Diet

• What Does the Data Show?

• Implementing Fiber in Your Daily Routine

Nutrition beliefs are as strongly held as political beliefs.

Each diet camp claims its diet is the best.

I believe there is no one-size-fits-all solution for nutrition. Everyone has their own instruction manual, and it's your goal to find what works best for you.

Instead of asking, "What should I eat?" a more important question is "How should I eat?"

The three critical components of nutrition, irrespective of diet:

• Eat real foods 80% of the time (single-ingredient whole foods)

• Prioritize protein and fiber

• Energy balance (Calorie surplus, maintenance, or restriction)

Today's newsletter focuses entirely on fiber. We will uncover what it really is, what the data shows about the benefits, and the best sources of fiber.

What is Fiber?

We have all heard the term 'fiber' before, but what exactly is it?

Fiber is basically a form of carbohydrate that your body can't digest.

Nutrition labels group fiber under the total carbohydrate section. The interesting thing is that the fiber's structure is similar to that of a carbohydrate; however, your body doesn't process it in the same way.

There are two different types of fiber: soluble and insoluble.

Insoluble (doesn't dissolve in water) fiber passes through the digestive tract with ease. Bulking stool prevents constipation and helps move food through your GI tract.

• Examples: vegetables, nuts, seeds, whole grains

Soluble (dissolves in water) fiber absorbs water and can slow digestion, blunt glucose spikes, and modestly help with lipid management. Soluble fiber is most effective for supporting the gut microbiome.

• Examples: Oats, fruits, beans, lentils

Dietary fiber encompasses a variety of plant-based, nondigestible carbohydrates and supports digestive health, reducing the risk of several chronic diseases.

Benefits of Consuming Fiber

Why is fiber important?

Fiber has consistently shown these powerful benefits:

Weight Loss

• Fiber, especially soluble fiber, promotes weight loss. Why? The primary mechanism is the enhanced feeling of satiety, which helps curb hunger. Oats are particularly effective in keeping you feeling full.

Blood Sugar Regulation

• Mechanistically, fiber slows carbohydrate absorption, which is responsible for prolonged glucose spikes. Fermentation of fiber in the colon produces short-chain fatty acids, which stimulate gut hormones that enhance insulin secretion.

Lipid Management

• Dietary fiber can help reduce LDL-C and ApoB levels. How? Soluble fiber absorbs water and turns into a gel in your gut. This gel traps some of the bile acids and cholesterol that your body would usually reabsorb. Because more of these get carried out of your body in your stool, your liver has to make new bile acids to replace them. To do that, it uses up more cholesterol, pulling it out of your bloodstream.

• This process results in reductions in LDL-C, total cholesterol, and ApoB, ​with meta-analyses showing dose-dependent effects:​ each 5 g/day increase in soluble fiber can lower LDL-C by about 5–8 mg/dL.

*Dietary fiber shows promising results as a piece of the puzzle for lipid management, but shouldn't be the primary intervention.

Reduce the risk of Cancer

• High dietary fiber intake is associated with a reduced risk of several types of cancer, particularly colorectal cancer. Mechanistically, fiber reduces your risk of cancer by promoting gut microbiome health, expelling carcinogens via increased stool, and many fiber-rich foods (fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes) contain antioxidants and phytochemicals.

What Does The Data Show

Here is a study worth reading: ​The impact of dietary fiber consumption on human health​.

This umbrella review examined thirty-three meta-analyses, encompassing 17,155,277 individuals, and observed the beneficial effects of consuming 25-30+ grams of fiber per day.

The major takeaways suggested strong evidence that high fiber diets were associated with lower risk of CVD, pancreatic cancer, diverticular disease, all-cause mortality, coronary heart disease, and ovarian disease.

The strongest evidence is in lowering CVD mortality and digestive tract cancers.

Despite this long list of benefits, global fiber intake remains significantly lower than the recommended levels.

Implementing Fiber in Your Daily Routine

After reading this newsletter, the benefits of increasing dietary fiber should be apparent.

How can we translate this data into our day-to-day lives?

Your daily fiber intake goal should be 25-30g of fiber.

​Click HERE for a Fiber Content of Foods Chart.​

A quick rule of thumb: beans (legumes), whole grains, fruit, vegetables, and nuts and seeds are all great sources of fiber.

There are fiber supplements, such as psyllium, and fiber bars that can help you meet your daily quotas; however, they are less effective than whole foods in terms of disease prevention.

Don't overcomplicate it.

Incorporating a source of fiber into each meal is an intentional way to meet your daily target intake.

Supplementation Made Simple

​IM8​ is my go-to all-in-one daily multivitamin.

I strive to consume nutrient-dense, whole-food meals, but I drink IM8 to further address the nutritional deficiencies in my diet.

​Here's what a full day of eating looks like for me.​

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Only the best,

Jeremy London, MD

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