Dietary fibre
Dietary fibreINTRODUCTORY FOOD SCIENCE
AND TECHNOLOGY
DIETARY FIBRE : SIGNIFICANT TO HUMAN HEALTH OR NOT?
In scientific terms, dietary fibre is a mixture of components derived from plant cell wall material and non-structural polysaccharides, as well as non-starch polysaccharides added to foods. It includes non-digestible polysaccharides such as cellulose, hemi-celluloses, gums, pectins, mucilages and lignin. From a nutrition point of view, some authorities also include 'resistant starch' (i.e. starch that is resistant to enzymic degradation, usually as a result of processing).
This dissertation deals with the physical and chemical properties of dietary fibre and discusses its significance with respect to disease prevention e.g. cancer and cardiovascular diseases, and more ultimately with respect to human health as a whole. Emphasis is given to the structure of the different forms of dietary fibre and how this affects the physical and chemical properties of each type resulting in different advantages and disadvantages to human health. The way in which fibre helps prevent disease is also discussed extensively in order to prove that clinical nutritionists are right to encourage intake of dietary fibre in increased amounts with caution to the fact that overindulgence may cause adverse effects.
Lastly the importance of high fibre foods in conjunction with a healthy lifestyle is presented as the 'formula' for a healthy body and avoidance of fibre depleted foods, a fact which is sadly abundant nowadays, is also mentioned.
Since ancient times, foods containing complex carbohydrates have been considered to be the ones with most nutritional value. Even the Bible speaks of how the complex carbohydrate manna miraculously sustained the children of Israel during their progress through the wilderness. Bread, of course, became known as the staff of life, and potatoes, a New World food, were grown on the private lands of Frederick the Great in 1774 to set an example to the German people as an inexpensive and easy way to avoid starvation.
Potatoes, breads, cereals, and other foods high in complex carbohydrates have always been regarded as cheap but essential, a staple for the poor. Now, however, as diets high in fats are being linked to heart disease and some cancers, as protein-rich meals are no longer the breakfast of champions, as high dietary fibre (found mostly in complex carbohydrates) is reported to possibly reduce the risk of colon cancer and heart disease, and as Americans learn that a 5-ounce steak has more calories than an equal amount of bread, pasta or potatoes (hold the butter), complex carbohydrates are becoming the chosen food of health and figure-conscious diners in the 1990's.
U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop in his 1988 Report on Nutrition and Health recommended reduction in four areas (fats and cholesterol, weight, sodium and alcohol). Only one area received a positive recommendation and this was complex carbohydrates and fibre. The report emphasises an increase in consumption of whole grain foods, cereal products, vegetables (including dried beans and peas), and fruits.
According to the director of the division of nutrition at FDA's...
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