Gut health was not a topic Rosalind Parker gave much thought until she started having stomach trouble. Her daily life started to include low energy, irregular digestion, and bloating; she could not understand why. She began investigating the function of fiber in general health at this point, and things turned around.
“Until I started paying attention to it, I never understood how vital fiber was.” Rosalind adds. “I thought I was eating healthy, but I was missing a fundamental component my gut needed to run as it should.”
Like many others, Rosalind had been following a diet too low in fiber and too heavy in processed foods. She started gradually adding more whole grains, legumes, fruits, and vegetables to her meals, and within weeks she observed a dramatic change.
Featuring oats topped with fresh berries and flaxseeds, breakfast grew to be one of her favorite dishes of the day. Her digestive tract depends on fiber, antioxidants, and omega-3s, all of which this little change provided.
While dinner featured healthful grains like brown rice or farro, combined with roasted vegetables and lean proteins, lunch usually consisted in fiber-rich salads including chickpeas, quinoa, and a range of bright vegetables.
“I also came to find the enchantment of fermented foods,” Rosalind says. Just as vital as fiber, foods including yogurt, kimchi, and sauerkraut not only taste fantastic but also help regulate intestinal bacteria.
One of the main advantages of her diet heavy in fiber? consistent levels of energy She now feels full and satisfied all day, with consistent digestion and less cravings than in the sugar crashes she used to go through. She says, “Everything else falls in place when your gut is happy.”
Rosalind’s road to improved gut health was one of learning to enjoy a greater range of nutrient-dense foods, not of restriction. She says, “People think fiber means boring, but that’s not true at all.” It’s about adding more, not about subtracting.
She now exhorts folks to be aware of their fiber consumption for general health as much as for digestion. “Your immune system, energy, even your mood is affected by gut health. The best thing is also that little modifications add up to a large impact.
