Prof Tim Spector names food that reduces risk of 'virtually every disease'
But the average Brit doesn't eat enough
A leading expert has named a type of food that reduces the risk of “virtually every disease” that Brits aren’t eating enough of. According to Professor Tim Spector, we should all be eating plenty of fibre.
Dietary fibre, commonly referred to as roughage, is the indigestible element found within plant-based foods, including fruits, vegetables, grains and legumes. These pass through the stomach, small intestine and colon largely intact, and are widely recognised for supporting digestion, maintaining bowel health and regulating blood sugar levels.
Prof Spector, an epidemiologist and founder of ZOE Health, claimed that eating more fibre could lower not only your risk of heart disease, but also your chances of cancer and autoimmune diseases.
Appearing on a recent episode of The Proof podcast, he explained more.
Podcast host Simon Hill asked him: “Most people fall well short of the fibre recommendation, what's your elevator pitch today? How do you make a case for fibre?”
Prof Spector shared that for every extra five grams of fibre you eat, you could be lowering your risk of heart disease and stroke by up to 11%. “Epidemiologically, it is the most solid data we've got,” he said.
“The more you have of it [fibre], the lower your risk of virtually every disease that's been measured. There doesn't seem to be an upper limit, so that it seems to be incremental that for every five grams extra fibre you're getting, you can reduce your early mortality from heart disease or strokes by somewhere between five and 11%, and that just keeps going up as you increase that dose.
“And you can get similar studies showing the same for cancer for mental health disease, autoimmune diseases. It seems to be really consistent and you don't get that with any other macronutrients.
“Of all the things to focus on, I would say it is the most important.”
Research
One study, published in BMC Medicine in 2022, found that fibre-rich diets decreased "all-cause mortality" and were linked to reduced blood pressure, cholesterol readings, and blood sugar concentrations.
The researchers concluded: "These findings emphasise the likely benefits of promoting greater dietary fibre intakes for patients with cardiovascular disease and hypertension. Further trials and cohort analyses in this area would increase confidence in these results."
What does the NHS say
According to the NHS website, consuming plenty of fibre is linked to a "lower risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and bowel cancer". It also advises that adults should be eating a minimum of 30g of fibre daily, yet the majority of us are currently managing only around 20g.
For children, the suggested daily fibre intake is:
- Children aged 2 to 5 years: should aim for approximately 15g of fibre
- Children aged 5 to 11 years: should aim for approximately 20g
- Teenagers aged 11 to 16 years: should aim for approximately 25g
To increase your fibre intake, the NHS says you could:
- Choose a higher-fibre breakfast cereal such as plain wholewheat biscuits (like Weetabix) or plain shredded whole grain (like Shredded Wheat), or porridge as oats are also a good source of fibre
- Go for wholemeal or granary breads, or higher-fibre white bread, and choose wholegrains like wholewheat pasta, bulgur wheat or brown rice
- Go for potatoes with their skins on, such as a baked potato or boiled new potatoes. Find out more about starchy foods and carbohydrates
- Add pulses like beans, lentils or chickpeas to stews, curries and salads
- Include plenty of vegetables with meals, either as a side dish or added to sauces, stews or curries. Find out more about how to get your 5 A Day
- Have some fresh or dried fruit, or fruit canned in natural juice for dessert. Because dried fruit is sticky, it can increase the risk of tooth decay, so it's better if it is only eaten as part of a meal, rather than as a between-meal snack
- For snacks, try fresh fruit, vegetable sticks, rye crackers, oatcakes, and unsalted nuts or seeds
