Page 63 - The Skinny On Your Diet Plan

benefit from eating slightly fewer carbs than people with high amylase,
but going super low carb probably isn’t the answer.

Another form of a carbohydrate is something we all know as fiber.

Fiber

Fiber, while not digested and absorbed in our small intestine, plays

an important role in health. We cover this in the book because fiber keeps
us feeling fuller without adding significantly to the calorie content of

food, lowers blood sugar levels, delays digestion of food (which makes us
feel fuller longer), lowers cholesterol, helps us avoid constipation, and

reduces colon cancer risk. Fiber, along with resistant starches, are fermented

by the microbiota in your large intestine, to make short chain fatty acids
(SCFA), carbon dioxide (CO2), CH4 (methane), H (hydrogen) and heat.

SCFA are then absorbed by the large intestine, where the cells of the large

intestine (colonocytes) use SCFA for energy.

Having healthy, diverse, and thriving gut bacteria is closely linked to
our overall health and function.

Recommended fiber intake:

• Adults up to age 50: 25 g for women and 38 g for men

• Over the age of 50: 21 g for women and 30 g for men

It is clearly very good stuff. However, it’s also possible to have too
much, the side effects being gas, diarrhea (and thus the increased risk of

messing your pants in public), constipation and bloating.

Niction Nutrition Fitness Academy LLC 62
NictionFitnessAcademy.com