Nutrition: Fibre

Fibre is an important part of our diets but isn't considered a nutrient.  This is because fibre is composed of long chains of glucose molecules that contain bonds that are not digested by humans.  We do not produce enzymes capable of breaking these special bonds called "beta bonds."
There are two types of fibre:
1. Soluble (viscous) dietary fibre - In the intestinal tract, soluble fibre dissolves in water and forms a gel  that slows the passage of food.  Therefore the food stays in our stomaches longer, which gives us the feeling of being full.   This also allows more time for nutrients to be in contact with the intestinal tract, which increases nutrient absorption.  Soluble fibre MAY also lower blood cholesterol levels.  This is how:
- soluble fibre increases excretion of bile and bile is made from cholesterol
- our body needs bile so it uses cholesterol to make more bile, thereby decreasing blood cholesterol levels
Sources - fruits, some legumes, oats, rye, and barley

2. Insoluble (non-viscous) dietary fibre - This type of fibre passes through fibre faster, which in turn slows glucose absorption. 
Sources - vegetables, wheat, and cereals

Where can we find fibre?
Fibre is found in most fruits, vegetables, legumes, and grains.  You can always read the nutrition facts table to see how much fibre you are getting per serving.

How much fibre do we need?
Men: 19-50 yrs - 38 g/day
        51+ yrs - 30 g/day

Women: 19-50 yrs - 25 g/day
              51+ yrs - 21 g/day

Remember to add more fibre slowly to your diet and drink lots of water!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Today's Food Item: Bran Muffin
Food Group: Grain Products
Serving Size: 1 medium (113g)
Calories: 355
Fat: 11g
Fibre: 9g
Walking: 89 min
Swimming or Jumping Rope: 39 min
Cycling: 51 min

Nutrition: Complex Carbohydrates

Happy New Year to all of you! Hope you all are staying true to your resolutions, I sure am trying my best with mine.

Let's get started:

Complex carbohydrates are made up of many sugar molecules joined together.  Complex carbohydrates are also known as polysaccharides or oligosaccharides. (depending on how many sugar molecules are joined together)

The three types of complex carbohydrates are starch, glycogen, and dextrin.

Starch is a plant's storage form of carbohydrates.  Two types of starch are amylose and amylopectin, which are produced in different proportions.  There are many types of amylose and amylopectin which have different characteristics such as flavour, solubility, and the tendency to thicken a substance.

Glycogen is humans' and animals' storage form of carbohydrates.  Our bodies contain approximately 500g of glycogen.  A fifth of this is stored in the liver and the rest is stored within our muscles.  When our body needs glucose the glycogen in our liver is broken down to glucose and then released into the blood.

Dextrin is formed when starch is digested with acid or heat.  For example, when we toast bread in the toaster, we create dextrin.  Dextrin is sweeter than starch so bread tastes slightly sweeter when toasted.

Fibre can also be categorized as a complex carbohydrate, but since it doesn't get digested within our bodies, I'll be talking about fibre as it's own category.

Keep commenting so I know you're reading!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Today's Food Item: Whole Wheat Bread
Food Group: Grain Products
Serving Size: 1 slice (35g)
Calories: 85
Fat: 1g
Fibre: 2g
Walking: 21 min
Swimming or Jumping rope: 10 min
Cycling: 12 min