Fiber, which comes in two types--soluble (dissolves in water) and insoluble (does not dissolve in water)--is essential for maintaining a healthy stomach, intestinal tract and colon. Consuming insoluble fiber helps food pass through your digestive tract and increases stool bulk to help waste pass through more quickly, thereby preventing constipation and irregular stools. Men age 50 and younger need 38 grams of fiber a day, while women of the same age group need 25 grams; and men and women older than 50 need 30 grams and 21 grams, respectively. Insoluble fiber is found in wheat bran, whole wheat flour, nuts, beans and vegetables.
Whole Grains
Foods made from whole grains include oatmeal, bread, pasta and rice. Examples of whole grains are oatmeal, brown rice, bulgar and whole wheat flour. Aside from providing insoluble fiber, whole grains have many health benefits, such as helping reduce cholesterol levels and the risk of heart disease, helping with weight management and providing essential vitamins and minerals. These include B vitamins (helps with metabolism), folic acid (encourages the forming of red blood cells), iron (carries oxygen in the blood), magnesium (helps build bones and release energy from muscles) and selenium (maintain a healthy immune system). Whole grains that have the highest insoluble fiber content in a 1-cup serving include barley bran (97.5 grams), barley (24.4 grams), wheat bran (22.9 grams), dry millet (13.8 grams) and whole wheat (12.5 grams).
Nuts
Aside from being a good source for insoluble fiber, nuts offer many other health benefits. Although each nut has different health qualities, all nuts provide unsaturated fats (monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats), which help lower bad cholesterol levels; omega-3 essential fatty acids, which helps promote a healthy heart, skin and hair; l-arginine, which is a substance that helps make your arteries more flexible to prevent blood clots; and vitamin E, which is needed for a healthy heart and moisture for your skin, eyes and hair. Nuts with the highest insoluble fiber content in a 1-cup serving includes almonds (14.3 grams), chestnuts (13.2 grams), pine nuts (13.1 grams) and coconut (11.9 grams). One medium-size coconut has 31.8 grams of insoluble fiber.
Legumes
Beans and other legumes are a good source of insoluble fiber with a packed nutritional content. The Department of Agriculture recommends eating at least 3 cups of legumes each day. Legumes contain iron, calcium, copper, zinc, potassium and folic acid. As a vegetarian option, legumes make a good source for protein. There are about 16 grams of protein in 1 cup of cooked legumes. Legumes help stabilize blood sugar levels as the soluble fiber slows the entry of glucose from food into your bloodstream so that your body has to produce less insulin (increased levels of insulin are a precursor to diabetes). A study by the USDA found that eating a 1/2 cup of beans a day helped lower LDL cholesterol levels. Eating beans may also help reduce the risk of colon cancer. Legumes with the highest insoluble fiber content in a 1-cup serving include roasted soybeans (16.7 grams), lentils (14.1 grams), yellow split peas (14.1 grams) and pinto beans (10.9 grams).
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