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Why grandma was wrong about fiber

(China Daily)
Updated: 2009-09-02 10:08

Soluble types of bran can ease inflamed bowels while insoluble varieties don't work.

Wheat bran and other fibrous foods that do not dissolve easily in water not only fail to soothe irritable bowels but may actually make things worse, according to a new study.

While soluble types of bran like psyllium appear to ease inflamed bowels, the insoluble varieties that have long been a staple for people in search of regularity don't work as advertised, the study finds.

Bran is the hard outer layer of grains. Psyllium, also referred to as ispaghula, is derived from the seed husks of the Plantago ovata plant, and is the chief ingredient in many over-the-counter laxatives.

The signature symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), which affects about 10 percent of the population, are abdominal pain and an irregular bowel habit.

In many countries, doctors recommend daily doses of fiber in the form of insoluble bran, but there have been very few rigorous studies to see whether boosting intake of this type of fiber actually works.

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