The Fiber Gap
There is a large difference between the quantities of fiber our bodies need and the amount we get, at all age levels. As a very conservative estimate, each of us needs about 15g of additional fiber per day. The table below shows the difference between what humans need at various stages of their lives and the amounts they typically ingest. The difference between these two is known as the ‘fiber gap’
The following table shows the fiber gap that exists in the United States.
|
Females |
We Need |
We Get |
The Gap |
|
Age 2-3 |
17g |
10g |
7g |
|
Age 4-8 |
21g |
12g |
9g |
|
Age 9-13 |
27g |
13g |
14g |
|
Age 14-18 |
30g |
13g |
17g |
|
Age 19-30 |
31g |
13g |
18g |
|
Age 31-50 |
28g |
14g |
14g |
|
Age 51+ |
27g |
14g |
13g |
|
Males |
We Need |
We Get |
The Gap |
|
Age 2-3 |
17g |
10g |
7g |
|
Age 4-8 |
24g |
12g |
12g |
|
Age 9-13 |
29g |
13g |
16g |
|
Age 14-18 |
33g |
13g |
20g |
|
Age 19-30 |
32g |
13g |
19g |
|
Age 31-50 |
32g |
14g |
18g |
|
Age 51+ |
30g |
14g |
16g |
Europeans have a slightly smaller fiber gap
An EPIC (European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition) study followed 519,978 men and women aged 25-70 from 10 countries (Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and UK) from 1992 to 1998.
Fiber intake measured: 12.64g to 31.91g for women
12.77g to 35.61g for men
Options for Filling the Fiber Gap
1. Capsules
Swallow 30 Metamucil capsules +15g fiber
2. Dietary changes with existing food choices
Breakfast: oatmeal instead of puffed rice cereal +4g fiber
Lunch: 1 cup lentil soup instead of 1 cup tomato soup +7g fiber
Snack: large apple instead of chocolate bar +4g fiber
Total additions through dietary changes +15g fiber
3. Eat foods made with extra natural fiber from resistant starch. Natural resistant starch adds roughly 2-3g of fiber per serving of most foods, along with unique health benefits. If all 6 of your daily grain servings include resistant starch, the fiber gap disappears.
Sources
1. “We Need” – Amount of fiber needed is the mean for different activity levels for each age group, as recommended by the IOM and the 2005 Dietary Guidelines.
2. “We Get” – Intakes are Mean Daily Intake of Dietary Fiber, in grams, for the United States from CSFII (1994-1996, 1998) as reported in Dietary Reference Intakes for Energy, Carbohydrates, Fiber, Fat Protein and Amino Acids (NAS, 2002, Appendix Table E-4)
3. Europeans – EPIC study published in The Lancet, 2003; 361:1496-1501, as reported by the Arizona Cancer Center at www.azcc.arizona.edu.