High Fiber Foods Chart
Provide a quick reference of 50 high-fiber foods with recommended serving sizes and fiber content for your clients
Fact Checked by Ericka Pingol.
What is a High Fiber Foods Chart?
A High Fiber Foods Chart is a convenient tool for aiding clients in meeting their daily fiber objectives and reaping the positive health benefits of dietary fiber. This user-friendly chart serves as inspiration for shopping lists, meal plans, and snack choices that enhance fiber intake.
The various benefits of fiber, such as promoting fullness, regulating blood sugar and cholesterol, and supporting healthy gut bacteria are well researched and understood, but surprisingly, up to 95% of individuals may fall short of the recommended dietary intake (RDI) of fiber (Quagliani and Felt-Gunderson, 2017). Tailoring a nutrition plan to individual preferences and lifestyles is crucial to bridge this gap.
To ensure your clients don’t forget about this vital form of carbohydrate, we have created a free High Fiber Foods Chart. This printable chart will help to ensure your patients who could benefit from increasing their fiber intake are facilitated to do so in a structured and simple way.
The High Fiber Foods Chart includes 50 varied high-fiber foods and serves as a quick reference for the grams of fiber contributed per given serving size of each food.
Printable High Fiber Foods Chart PDF
Check out our free High Fiber Foods Chart PDF for better health
How Does it Work?
This High Fiber Foods Chart is a simple-to-use resource that is almost ready to go as soon as you download your free copy. However, just follow the simple steps below to help your clients get the most out of this resource.
Access the High Fiber Foods Chart
The first step is to download the high-fiber foods chart from the link provided on this page. Once you have downloaded your own copy, you can print out a copy for your clients if they prefer hard copies- or share it with them via email, messaging, or from within the Carepatron platform.
Customize the List
While this chart includes 50 ideas of high-fiber foods, we know that your clients will always have their particular favorite options that work for them, so we have left room for the list to be customized with some extra items.
Include Personalized Notes
Finally, tailor the chart to your client's needs using the additional notes section—offer insights on daily fiber goals, meal planning tips, or creative ways to blend different high-fiber foods for a wholesome and delicious approach.
High Fiber Foods Chart Example (Sample)
To see how this High Fiber Foods Chart PDF can be customized to suit your client’s dietary fiber needs, just take a look at our example High Fiber Foods Chart or download the sample PDF here. D
Download our free High Fiber Foods Chart PDF
When Would You use This Chart?
Health professionals, including dietitians, nutritionists, and primary healthcare providers, may utilize a high-fiber foods chart as a valuable resource in various contexts. This tool can be particularly useful when designing personalized dietary plans or offering nutritional guidance to individuals aiming to improve their overall health or manage specific health conditions.
This high-fiber foods chart can be invaluable in creating balanced meal plans. It can be used to educate clients about which foods can help them incorporate more dietary fiber into their diets for digestive health, weight management, or disease prevention.
Specific health professionals who may benefit from incorporating this high-fiber foods list into their practice include:
- Dietitians and Nutritionists
- Primary Care Providers
- Fitness Coaches and Personal Trainers
- Gastroenterologists
- Geriatricians
- Weight Management Specialists
- General Practitioners.
Your clients can use this high-fiber foods chart as an initial inspiration for meal or snack ideas and a constant reminder and reinforcement of the dietary change they are making for their health. Seeing such a varied list of food options will help to encourage your clients to make high-fiber food choices and remind them that dietary fiber can be both delicious and nutritious.
Research & Evidence
Defining dietary fiber has been a historical challenge, with the Institute of Medicine (2001) specifying it as nondigestible carbohydrates and lignin intrinsic to plants. However, the U.S. FDA broadens the scope, incorporating synthetic carbohydrates like psyllium husk under the dietary fiber umbrella. Despite variations in definitions, the health benefits of fiber, supported by reputable organizations like the American Heart Association, are widely acknowledged.
Though we can’t digest dietary fiber ourselves, the fiber we eat fuels our friendly gut bacteria, promoting digestion, reducing insulin dependence, and aiding weight loss in animals and humans (Parnell and Reimer, 2012; Megur et al., 2022). The weight loss mechanism of dietary fiber is complex and involves fiber types like guar fiber, which slows the transit time of food and induces a sense of fullness (Rao, 2016). The bulking effect of insoluble fiber, and the fact it generally requires more chewing- slowing us down while eating it, also contributes to satiety (Burton-Freeman, 2000). Crucially, fiber can also ease constipation by absorbing water, resulting in softer stools and increased stool bulk (Akbar and Shreenath, 2023).
Denis Parsons Burkitt's 1960s experiments, studying populations with varying fiber intake, laid foundational knowledge in the importance of dietary fiber- even though it wasn’t called dietary fiber until much later (Cummings and Engineer, 2018). While the definition of dietary fiber may have evolved, its impact on health remains a constant and well-supported aspect of nutrition.
References
Akbar A, Shreenath AP. High Fiber Diet. [Updated 2023 May 1]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2023 Jan-. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK559033/
Burton-Freeman, B. (2000). Dietary Fiber and Energy Regulation. The Journal of Nutrition, 130(2), 272S-275S. https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/130.2.272S
Megur, A., Daliri, E. B.-M., Baltriukienė, D., & Burokas, A. (2022). Prebiotics as a Tool for the Prevention and Treatment of Obesity and Diabetes: Classification and Ability to Modulate the Gut Microbiota. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 23(11), 6097. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23116097
Panel on Macronutrients, Panel on the Definition of Dietary Fiber, Subcommittee on Upper Reference Levels of Nutrients, Subcommittee on Interpretation and Uses of Dietary Reference Intakes, Standing Committee on the Scientific Evaluation of Dietary Reference Intakes, Food and Nutrition Board, & Institute of Medicine. (2005). Dietary Reference Intakes for Energy, Carbohydrate, Fiber, Fat, Fatty Acids, Cholesterol, Protein, and Amino Acids (p. 10490). National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/10490
Parnell, J., & Reimer, R. (2012). Prebiotic fiber modulation of the gut microbiota improves risk factors for obesity and the metabolic syndrome. Gut Microbes, 3(1), 29–34. https://doi.org/10.4161/gmic.19246
Quagliani, D., & Felt-Gunderson, P. (2017). Closing America’s Fiber Intake Gap: Communication Strategies From a Food and Fiber Summit. American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine, 11(1).
Rao, T. P. (2016). Role of guar fiber in appetite control. Physiology & Behavior, 164, 277–283. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2016.06.014
Commonly asked questions
The Institute of Medicine establishes recommended dietary intakes (RDIs) for dietary fiber, varying based on sex, age, and health conditions. Men aged 19 to 50 are advised to consume 38 grams, while females in the same age bracket have a recommended intake of 25 grams. Pregnant or lactating individuals may have altered RDIs.
This High Fiber Foods Chart is used as a visual aid to identify food sources rich in fiber. Individuals can refer to these charts to plan meals that enhance digestive function, regulate blood sugar levels, and support overall well-being.
Fiber is predominantly present in plant-based sources like nuts, seeds, and whole grains. While supplemental options like psyllium husk are available, obtaining fiber from whole foods offers additional advantages in the form of essential vitamins, minerals, and plant phytochemicals.
