Herbs are used to detoxify the body from
waste and toxins.
Herbal medicines including dietary fibers
were not fully recognized for their medical significance until recently when
various studies have been conducted to understand the benefits derived from herbs.
Herbs, especially those with dietary
fibers, are excellent in reducing total blood cholesterol — cutting the risk of
coronary heart disease.
Aside from that, dietary fibers also help in
alleviating numerous bowel disorders.
There are two categories of dietary fibers — soluble and insoluble.
Soluble fibers may be dissolved in water.
Insoluble fibers do not dissolve. Both of these fibers help in regulating bowel movements.
Psyllium is a natural, water-soluble,
gel-reducing fiber that is extracted from the husks of blond psyllium seeds.
It
is also a member of a class of soluble fibers referred to as mucilages.
These mucilages are used as a thickening
and stabilizing agents in most salad dressings, lotions, soap, and creams.
Likewisem psyllium is used to fight a
variety of digestive problems such as constipation, diarrhea, diverticular
disease and colitis.
It is utilized by most colon cleansing
programs as a means of preventing colon cancer.
The reason for this, most of the diet of
people today is made up of meat products, fats, and sugar that are often low in
fiber content.
These foods tend to slow down intestinal
transit time resulting in irregular bowel movements.
Moreover, these types of foods usually take
two days to transit the intestines, often resulting in constipation.
An irregular bowel movement allows for
bacterial putrefaction and exposes you to carcinogenic substances within the
colon.
Dietary fibers help in stool
bulking as well as in softening stools.
A stool that is larger, softer and bulkier
moves through the intestine more easily and more quickly since less exertion is
required.
This type of bowel movement is ideal for
the intestinal wall since very little force has to be applied.
Likewise, hemorrhoids and development of
diverticular disease and varicose veins are prevented.
The bulking effect of dietary
fibers also rids the colon of toxic substances since it acts like a
sponge soaking up toxic substances attached to the walls of the intestines.
This spongy action of dietary fibers is
also ideal for those trying to lose some weight as it decreases hunger.
Dietary fibers are also useful
in cases of diarrhea since they slow down a too rapid transfer time.
It stabilizes bowel movements and often
times are used to control alternating cases of diarrhea and constipation.
They also encourage the growth of friendly
intestinal bacteria such as Lactobacillus acidophilus and bifidobacteria that
are very helpful in regulating bowel movement.
There is only one problem with these
fibers.
They have the tendency to slow down the
stomach’s emptying of food into the small intestine and increase blood glucose
instead.
On the positive side, fibers are also found
to stimulate pancreatic enzymes that can be beneficial in the management of
diabetes.
Please consult your doctor for advice
before making any dietary changes.
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