[flanders]

(11-02-2018 06:00 PM)Thot Leader Wrote:  

(11-02-2018 02:57 PM)flanders Wrote:  

It's not, no. Fiber is indigestible, why would it aid in digestion? All it can do is blow up in size in the stomach (3-5x its size in volume), get jammed in the duodenum, cause gallstones or pancreatitis, and scour the inner walls of the intestines on its way out. It binds to vital micronutrients and electrolytes and cause gas and bloating.

... really? So this is one more dietary guideline that needs to be chucked away? I find I shit so much better when I take it, which fits with everything I've read on it:

Quote:

Psyllium is used clinically as a bulk laxative, an agent that has laxative effects but secondary to increasing fecal size; a gentler laxative relative to chemical agents like caffeine or senna alexandrina. This bulk occurs due to water and gas absorption in the small intestines and colon to give chyme (made from digested food) more size and softness. This bulk is retained in the colon despite microflora as psyllium is poorly fermented (highly fermented fibers may be metabolized by bacteria in the colon, and water retaining properties with the fiber would be lost in this scenario).

Psyllium is proven to increase fecal size and moisture, and the most common characteristics of stool following supplementation of psyllium are 'soft, sleek, and easily passable.' Relative to other sources of dietary fiber, psyllium appears to be more effective at forming feces and appears to be one of the few fiber sources not associated with excessive flatulence.

Apparently it also lowers cholesterol by absorbing fatty acids, which may be a good thing or a bad thing depending on the individual's needs (I'll need to read up on it more). But as a laxative (which is often necessary for people who eat a lot of meat) it seems helpful. I couldn't find anything on serious risks or side effects. Also, my doctor told me to take a fiber supplement (it wasn't psyl. but a different kind) around 30 minutes prior to taking probiotics, apparently it helps your body absorb the prob.

Sorry to derail the thread, but if you're eating a lot of red meat then fiber intake may be worth thinking about.

I haven't eaten more than a few grams of fiber per day in years and zero grams per day in the last few weeks and shit twice daily. Sometimes three times daily, mind you these are small zero-strain deuces. Babies don't eat fiber either and take dumps probably about as frequently as people ought to.

Most people I know with high(er) fiber consumption think every two or three days is not considered irregular.
If you're young fiber can speed motility through the large intestine but this isn't always ideal either.

Dietary fat also increases motility (more effectively and without destruction to the inner membranes of the intestines) which is why it's required on a carnivore diet. You don't need fiber to take shits.

Fiber does work as a laxative but regular excretion is not some kind of disease you're born with where you must take laxatives for it to work.

If somebody were to go on a zero fiber diet and 'prove me wrong' it's likely they're going to be constipated for awhile given that regular/chronic fiber consumption (and drinking too much water) treats, causes, and worsens latent constipation much like addiction. Unbeknownst to them, they'd been constipated the whole time and require very large (usually dry) stools to trigger the nervous reflex to defecate.

Over time, and due to aging, the colon eventually weakens further and more fiber and water are required to stay regular, eventually worsening to diverticulitis (which will increase the rate of colon cancer ~3200%), pancreatitis, gallstones, kidney stones, etc; among a host of other conditions. Then they go to the doctor and are told to eat more fiber and drink more water, further worsening the electrolyte balance that is required to take regular shits and leading to drier, larger, harder stools. Tapering off slowly would be the best plan here.

Much of what is said about psyllium may be true regarding absorption of fatty acids, but recall that most necessary micronutrients are fat soluble, so any actual nutrition you hope to get from whatever you're eating would then be excreted.

I don't care if people choose to eat fiber or not, if they like getting GERD, ulcers, or straining at the shitter with bleeding hemorrhoids at 40 or 60, getting surgery for a torn anus or hernia or god knows what that's their business. It affects how much I pay in taxes and is probably a big cause behind the obesity epidemic, but I don't go griping about smokers either.