Why does Dr. Martin say fiber is overrated?
Because he thinks it was oversold, and he has said so for years.
Where he stands:
Dr. Martin, from The Doctor Is In, episode 830Convince me and I will change my mind, but I've always said this about fiber. It's overrated. It's overrated.
He is hardest on insoluble fiber, the kind your body cannot use for nourishment.
On insoluble fiber:
Dr. Martin, from The Doctor Is In, episode 830Now, the worst fibers are insoluble, meaning that you eat them, but they're on their way out because your body can't take it for nutrition, has nothing to do with what your body will absorb.
In plain terms, it is bulk. It goes in and comes out without feeding you. For the bigger picture, read where Dr. Martin starts with gut health for women over 60.
Where did the idea that we need so much fiber come from?
From cereal companies, he says. He traces fiber's place in mainstream health advice back to breakfast cereal, and All-Bran in particular.
Kids never cared for All-Bran, he jokes, yet it became famous anyway, and fiber was the selling point.
The promise people heard, and repeated to him for years:
Dr. Martin, from The Doctor Is In, episode 830They said, "Well, it'll make you go to the bathroom." How many times I've heard that from patients over the years.
Being regular matters to him. He just does not think a bowl of bran is how you get there.
Doesn't fiber feed your good gut bacteria?
It feeds bacteria, he agrees. The question is which ones.
His summary of a study on insoluble fiber:
Dr. Martin, from The Doctor Is In, episode 830This is significant guys, insoluble fiber. You know what it does. It feeds the bad bacteria.
He says this happens mostly in the small intestine, where your food is absorbed. Strong stomach acid fights the bad bacteria there. When acid runs low, he says, fiber feeds them.
He links reflux to too little stomach acid, not too much. More on that in why digestion slows down after 60.
Then he took on the popular line that fiber feeds the microbiome, your gut bacteria:
Dr. Martin, from The Doctor Is In, episode 830Yeah, it does. I agree. It's just feeding the wrong ones like sugar does.
"We have bought the lie that your body can't live without fiber, fiber, fiber."
Dr. Martin, from The Doctor Is In, episode 830Can too much fiber make bloating worse?
He thinks so, and yeast is why. He sees yeast overgrowth in the gut behind a lot of bloating, and he says fiber, like sugar, feeds the wrong crowd.
On what yeast does once it settles in your gut:
Dr. Martin, from The Doctor Is In, episode 830Inside your body, it makes you bloat. It creates an inflammatory response. When you have inflammation, you have less room in your bowel.
An inflamed bowel can also swing between constipation and loose stools.
And on fiber and sugar together:
Dr. Martin, from The Doctor Is In, episode 830Sugar and fiber are not a good combination. They're feeding the bad guys in the small intestine.
His shorthand for it is "don't feed the bears." If bloating is part of your day, read what is really behind bloating after 60.
Does more fiber fix constipation?
Not in his experience.
His point about the way people eat now:
Dr. Martin, from The Doctor Is In, episode 830There'd be no constipation for the amount of fiber people eat in our society.
He names three causes instead: yeast overgrowth, a sluggish thyroid and inflammation in the gut. That inflammation can come from yeast, or from stress that has dragged on for a long time.
When the bowel flips between hard and loose, he says:
Dr. Martin, from The Doctor Is In, episode 830Sometimes, it's back and forth, but it's not a lack of fiber. It's inflammation.
For the thyroid, he goes by how you feel more than by a lab number. He asks about hair and eyebrows thinning, skin drying out and weight that creeps on. Read more on thyroid issues in older women.
His full plan for a slow bowel is in what to do about chronic constipation.
Should you eat more salad for your gut?
He is not a fan of salad at every meal. He says people skip the eggs, meat and cheese and graze on salad as if they were rabbits.
His way of putting it:
Dr. Martin, from The Doctor Is In, episode 830You're not a cow. Cows have four stomachs. You only have one. Cows eat the grass. You don't.
Carbohydrates get the same verdict. He says much of a carb is debris, "like paper and twigs," and your body throws most of it away but holds on to the sugar. More in where bread goes in your body.
Is any fiber good for you?
Yes, one: flaxseed. He likes it even though plenty of experts warn people off it.
Why flaxseed makes his list:
Dr. Martin, from The Doctor Is In, episode 830I even allow you to have some flaxseed on the reset. Why do I do that? Well, first of all, the biggest thing that's in flaxseed is lignans. It's a hundred times more than anywhere else in the plant kingdom, hundred times.
He says lignans help block estrogen, and getting estrogen down is part of his plan for a sluggish bowel. When estrogen runs high next to progesterone, he says, the gut often feels it. More in high estrogen after 60.
One caution:
Dr. Martin, from The Doctor Is In, episode 830Now listen, if you have diverticulosis, then be careful with the seeds. Grind them up.
Diverticulosis means little pouches in the wall of the colon, he explains.
What does Dr. Martin suggest instead of more fiber?
A short list, which he gave at the end of the episode. Water comes first.
On water:
Dr. Martin, from The Doctor Is In, episode 830Make sure you have enough water and only water is water. Do you understand me? Only water is water.
Next come probiotics, which he thinks almost everyone should take, and coffee, which he says keeps the bowel moving the way it should. More on whether seniors need probiotics.
His list, start to finish:
Dr. Martin, from The Doctor Is In, episode 830Probiotic, water, coffee, flax. I like that.
He adds no sugar, lower stress and a thyroid that is working well.
"Don't over fiber it. It's overrated."
Dr. Martin, from The Doctor Is In, episode 830Watch Dr. Martin explain why fiber is overrated
The full episode covers the study on insoluble fiber, the cereal history, his causes of constipation and his short list.
Common questions
Is it true that fiber is overrated for women over 60?
He thinks so. He says women have more moving parts than men, and hormones often show up in the gut. So he looks at hormones before he looks at fiber. Episode 830.
Is fiber good for IBS?
He is wary of it. When the bowel swings between constipation and diarrhea, he sees an inflamed gut, and he says a study found fiber irritates it by feeding the wrong bugs. Episode 830.
Does sugar make bloating worse?
In his view, yes. He says sugar feeds yeast and the wrong bacteria, so no sugar is on his short list. Episode 830.
Start your short list with a probiotic
A probiotic is on Dr. Martin's short list, right beside water and coffee. Probiotic Complex is the one he formulated in clinic: 50 billion live probiotics across 11 strains, and no fridge needed.
60-day money-back guarantee. If you have a bowel condition or take medication, talk to your doctor before you change how you eat.
