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How to eat 12 pounds of food daily and still lose weight...

Posted Sep 17 2008 12:40am 1 Comment

Imagine eating 12 pounds of food a day -- and still staying thin and healthy.

Sounds crazy, right?

Well, that's exactly what our hunter-gatherer ancestors ate for millennia!

And they didn't have any obesity or chronic diseases like heart disease, diabetes, cancer, or dementia.

Of course, I wouldn't advise anyone today to eat 12 pounds of food, because the food in our society lacks one major secret ingredient that our ancestors ate in nearly all their food -- fiber!

Fiber has so many health benefits that I've made it the entire focus of this week's blog.

But before I tell you about what fiber can do for you, let's a look a little more at the history of fiber.

Dr. Dennis Burkitt, a famous English physician, studied the differences between indigenous African bushmen and their "civilized" western counterparts. 

The bushmen seemed to be free of the scourges of modern life --including heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and obesity. 

Dr. Burkitt found that the average bushman had a stool weight of 2 pounds and the "civilized" men had a stool weight of only 4 ounces - that's 87.5% smaller! 

The difference? 

In a word, fiber!

Today, the average American eats about just 8 grams of fiber a day.




First, you need fiber to keep you healthy from top to bottom, as well as to provide food for the healthy bacteria that work within you to promote health.

But how can fiber actually prevent obesity and all the chronic disease of aging?   

It's actually quite simple.


And that keeps your blood sugar and cholesterol in ideal balance -- and quickly eliminates toxins from your gut and reduces your appetite.

And there's good science to back this up.

Research shows that fiber can lower blood sugar as potently as some diabetes medication, lower cholesterol, and promote weight loss.

It's clear -- fiber is a great ally in the battle of the bulge.

But it's also a hero in more serious battles.

For example, one recent study showed how butyrate made by gut bacteria from certain types of fiber acts as a switching molecule that turns on an anticancer gene -- and turns OFF colon cancer. 




Plus, it's a great natural cure for constipation and irregularity.

So how much fiber do you need to reap its benefits?

You should shoot for 30 to 50 grams a day.

And the type of fiber is important, too.


But bran (wheat fiber) is mostly insoluble and doesn't get digested. Think of it as more of a scouring pad for your intestines. 

That's good for getting you regular, but it just can't help your health the way that soluble fiber can.

You'll find soluble fiber in fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts, seeds and most whole grains.

The bacteria in your gut metabolize soluble fiber -- and that's when the benefits start.



Now you can see just how crucial fiber is to good heath!

In just a minute, I'm going to tell you how to increase your fiber intake.

But first, I want to tell you about some recent discoveries about an ancient fiber source that can help you lose weight, lower your cholesterol, reduce your appetite and lower your blood sugar more effectively than ANY other fiber.

I call it a SUPER FIBER!

It's called glucomannan (GM), and it's a soluble, fermentable, and highly viscous dietary fiber that comes from the root of the elephant yam, also known as konjac (Amorphophallus konjac or Amorphophallus rivieri), native to Asia.

Indigenous to Asia, the konjac tuber has been used for centuries as an herbal remedy and to make traditional foods such as konjac jelly, tofu, and noodles.


So what makes this fiber so super?

Well, it can absorb up to 50 times its weight in water --making it one of the most viscous dietary fibers known!

And that means that GM can help you shed pounds.  


Even better, this resulted in significant weight loss in overweight and obese individuals.

How can this be?

First, GM works by promoting a sense of fullness.


GM also lowers the energy density of the food you eat.  In other words, it bulks up food in your gut -- creating a lower calorie content per weight of food you eat.


Studies show that the weight of food controls your appetite, so the fiber increases the food's weight WITHOUT increasing calories. 


For example, it can signal the brain that there is a lot of food in your gut and to slow down stuffing food in there.




And finally, you lose more calories through stool because GM soaks up all those calories!

And GM can help your health in other ways.


With all those benefits, there's no doubt you should eat more fiber.

No, you probably won't be eating 12 pounds of food like your ancestors did!


Here are some simple suggestions for increasing fiber in your diet.

1) Get the flax.

Get a coffee grinder just for flax seeds, grind 1/2 cup at a time, and keep it in a tightly sealed glass jar in the fridge or freezer. 

Eat 2 tablespoons of ground flax seeds a day -- Sprinkle it on salads, grains, or vegetable dishes or mix it in a little unsweetened applesauce.

2) Load up on legumes.

Beans beat out everything else for fiber content!

3) Bulk up on vegetables.


4) Go with the grain.


5) Eat more fruit.


6) Go nuts.


7) Start slowly. 

Switching abruptly to a high-fiber diet can cause gas and bloating. Increase your fiber intake slowly till you get up to your 50 grams a day.

8) Consider a good fiber supplement.


9) Choose GM.

By now, you know that my favorite kind is glucomannan (GM), or konjac. Many companies sell it in capsule form. Although I don't normally recommend specific brands, I like the one produced by Natural Factors called WellBetX.

You can take 2 to 4 capsules with a glass of water, 30 to 60 minutes before eating. Don't take any medications within 1 hour before or 2 hours after taking it because the fiber may absorb the medication.

As you can see, fiber has big benefits for your health --from encouraging weight loss to preventing chronic diseases. I hope you'll start adding more of this important compound into your diet today!

Now I'd like to hear from you...


How much fiber do you think you currently eat every day?

What high-fiber foods do you enjoy?


Please let me know your thoughts by clicking on the Add a Comment button below and posting your comment.

Comments (1)
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Excellent article!  I gleaned a wealth of understanding in regard to my current health dilemma.


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