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 Researchers questioned 754 teens from Augusta, Georgia, about their
eating habits on at least four separate occasions. Researchers also
tested participants' blood pressure and blood sugar levels and
looked for insulin resistance, which happens when the body is less
effective at using the hormone insulin to convert sugars in the
blood into energy for cells.
Only two teens in the study consumed the minimum amount of daily
recommended fiber - 38 grams for males and 25 grams for females -
researchers report in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Overall, participants consumed an average of 10.9 grams daily.
"Our adolescents had very low intakes of soluble and insoluble
fiber," said senior study author Haidong Zhu of the Medical College
of Georgia and Augusta University.
"Both lower soluble and insoluble fiber intakes were associated with
higher insulin levels; furthermore, lower soluble fiber intake was
associated with higher systolic and diastolic blood pressure," Zhu
said by email.
Dietary fiber can be found in a variety of fruits, vegetables, whole
grains, beans, nuts and seeds. It can help people feel fuller when
they eat, aiding with weight management, and it has also been linked
to a lower risk of heart disease and diabetes, according to the U.S.
Department of Agriculture. Most Americans eat far less fiber than
recommended, however.
For the study, researchers looked at total fiber as well as each of
the two types of fiber people need in their diet. Insoluble fiber,
often called roughage, can be found in grains, nuts, fruits and
veggies and helps prevent constipation. Soluble fiber in beans,
oats, barley and avocados helps soften stool and also helps slow
down the amount of sugar absorbed in the blood.
Males in the study had average total daily fiber intake of 12 grams,
the study found. Increasing this to the recommended daily minimum of
38 grams could lead to decreases in blood pressure, blood sugar and
insulin resistance, the study team estimated.
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Teen boys who increased their fiber intake to the daily recommended
amount, for example, could see their systolic blood pressure - the
top number that shows what happens when the heart beats -- drop by
an average of 6.3 mmHg (millimeters of mercury). They could also see
their diastolic blood pressure - the bottom number that shows what
happens when the heart rests between beats - drop by an average of
5.2 mmHg.
Adolescent girls who increased their fiber intake to the recommended
25 grams a day could see their systolic blood pressure drop by an
average of 3.7 mmHg and their diastolic pressure decline by 3.0 mmHg
on average.
While these teens didn't have high blood pressure, reductions of
that magnitude might be enough for some adults with elevated blood
pressure to reduce it back to a healthy range.
The study wasn't a controlled experiment designed to prove whether
or how fiber intake might directly impact blood pressure or risk
factors for diabetes, and it also wasn't designed to show how teen
eating habits or lab results might lead to specific health outcomes
in adulthood.
"It is really likely the entire lifestyle that is operating here -
physical activity and dietary choices," said Dr. Margo Denke, a
former professor of medicine at the University of Texas Southwestern
Medical School in Dallas who wasn't involved in the study.
"This paper reiterates key elements of the theoretical relationship
between dietary intake and metabolic syndrome," a cluster of risk
factors for heart disease and diabetes, Denke said by email.
Teens are likely missing a lot of fiber in their diets because they
consume too much processed food and not enough whole grains, fruits,
and veggies, Denke added.
SOURCE: https://go.nature.com/2GSbog4 European Journal of Clinical
Nutrition, online December 6, 2018.
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