Sport Is this true (calories from Fiber)???

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xtreme381

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Hi Again!

While browsing through the many forums and posts on this site for some interesting nutrition tips, I came across something in one of the threads that struck a cord. I would like to know if this is true because it would be quite an interesting fact and something I would take into account in my diet going forward.

For every gram of Dietary Fiber you can subtract 4 calories from the total caloric amount in the serving size. This is because Dietary Fiber is not absorbed into the system thus does not contribute to daily caloric intake.
For example for a food with 4g Dietary Fiber, you could subtract 16 calories from the total (4*4= 16) caloric value of the food.

Now I assume this would only go for Insoluable Fiber and not soluable fiber (makes sense logically) or am I wrong? If anyone could confirm or deny this theory, I would greatly appreciate it.

I can't remember this exact thread (nor who posted it) where I read this but it was definitely in this forum/sub-form.
 
your right about insoluable not being digested, but ive personally never heard of minus 4 calories.
 
I was aware that Insoluable Fiber is not digested; however, I didn't think that you could actually discount those calories from the food you eat. I assume the 4 calorie count would come from the amount of calories present in one gram of Dietary Fiber. So for instance, if a food contained 100 total calories and 2 grams of Dietary Fiber (as listed on the label). The actual amount of calories absorbed by the body would be 92 (removing the 8 calories attributed to the Fiber count). For people who are calorie counting and who consume alot of fiber (insoluable) daily, this could have an impact on managing their daily caloric intake IMO.

Thoughts?
 
Derwyddon is correct, at least for US food labels.

fiber isn't used as energy, ergo the calories from it "don't count"
 
Ah - Thanks!

I did not know that US Food Labels already discounted calories from Fiber. The whole logic makes sense but I wanted to know if the actual calorie count on the food counted the fiber.

Apparently, it does not! Thanks for the advice (I wanted to increase my fiber intake and I'm looking at foods like oats (more often) and sweet potatoes. Any other good recommendations for Complex Carbs (w/ little to no sugar)?
 
Dietary fiber does not necessarily mean insoluble; both soluble and insoluble are lumped together under the generic category "dietary fiber". So a portion of the fiber may contain calories (soluble) or be indigestible (insoluble). Unfortunately lots of products such as cereals boast a high fiber content but a high percentage of that fiber is soluble therefore doesn't just "clean out your system" as the term suggests.
 
I just wanted to increase my overall intake because I knew I wasn't getting enough. I'm trying to balance out my proportions so I've added some servings of quinoa (get some good proteins in there too) and Fiber One cereal for breakfast or a topping on my cottage cheese. I also came across a cereal by Weight Watchers that surprisingly tasted pretty good and has a decent nutritional profile. Check it out and let me know what you think. I came across it at my parent's house and had a bowl to cure a sweet tooth!
 
Both soluble and insoluble fiber is healthy and i don't believe there's any ideal proportion. Ideal nutrition is generally provided by eating food close to its natural state, for example a variety of fruits, vegs, and grains. My guess is that insoluble fiber is probably not beneficial if we were eating a perfect diet; it just passes through you. However, we typically ingest a lot of "junk" so insoluble fiber is good for cleaning out the system (ie, the bad stuff in your digestive tract binds with it and gets eliminated). Too much fiber is not good because vitamins and other nutrients also may bind to the fiber and be dragged out of your body. I would say, if you eat a good amount of fruit and vegs, don't worry about fiber. You don't have to eat a lot of grains to get fiber. Unless your diet is mostly meat and dairy, then you're probably getting enough fiber.
 
I agree with the last post except for the first quater. The ideal ratio is 3-1 sol/insol. Most people dont get enough fiber so aim for around 20g a day.
 
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