10 High Fiber Foods For Better Health at Work

If asked to choose between high fiber foods like green veggies or fast food like a cheeseburger in a busy work routine, I guess it is safe to assume that most of us will choose the latter.

When it comes to office meals, a lot of professionals now either have little or no time at all to spend on prepping a healthy bite. Owing to their busy schedule, they munch on unhealthy snacks rich in fat and pleases their taste bud.

Having pizzas and burgers occasionally won't hurt. Still, if the same diet continues daily, it makes us prone to various health ailments. These ailments can turn fatal by severely affecting the way our body function like

• It impacts our cardiovascular health by increasing bad cholesterol levels.
• Contributes to improper digestion.
• Heightens the risk of diabetes and other chronic illnesses.

So, what can you do about it?

There are many two prime things that you can do here. The first is to exercise a lot and shed away the extra fat. Secondly, increase the amount of fiber intake in your daily meals.

What is Fiber?

Fiber, also called roughage, is a nutritious content that our digestive system cannot break down, unlike other nutrients. It is primarily found in vegetables, fruits, and other plant-based crops like whole grain, barley, beans, nuts, etc.

The advantage of having fiber-rich food is that it keeps the digestive system clean and helps to detox your body from harmful toxins improving our immunity.

The fiber intake that is recommended daily is 25 grams for females and 38 grams for males. However, people hardly consume even half the amount of fiber that I have just mentioned.

The importance of having food with high fiber content increases even more since we are moving less because of the sedentary lifestyle that has gripped everyone. Due to this, our body cannot break down the excess fat, and it mixes with our blood cells that could hinder blood circulation.

This is one of the primary reasons why many employees feel burned out at work very quickly, fall prey to obesity, and develop heart diseases in the long run.

Hence, in my blog, I have listed down ten high fiber food items that you can eat at work and keep your internal health in perfect shape for better productivity.

10 Food Items Having High Amounts of Fiber for Work

1. Raspberries

Fiber content per cup - 8 Grams

Raspberries are a great source of fiber, along with vitamin c and manganese, that you can easily eat while working. It also contains antioxidants that help keep the blood clean by removing free radicals. These are nothing but the waste produced by our cells and can cause oxidative stress.

2. Chickpeas

Fiber content per cup - 12.4 grams (Cooked)

Cooked chickpeas can be another great addition to your meal plan as you can easily add them to your salad or consume it directly if you want. However, you must keep in mind not to consume much at one go if you have some other items in your meal just to avoid some extra calories. A cup of chickpeas can have as much as 200 grams of calories and 164 grams if it is boiled.

3. Avocado

Fiber content per cup - 10 grams

Well, if you want to have a fibrous meal and at the same time don’t want to miss out on that creamy feeling, then avocados would be the best option. On average, a regular avocado could contain around 10 to 13 grams of soluble fiber.

4. Dried Figs

Fiber content per cup - 5 grams

You can also choose dried figs to include in our fiber diet plan. Besides being tasty, dried figs contain more nutrients than fresh figs, i.e., around 5 grams of fiber per cup and 20 grams of calories. You can either have these alone or mix them with some other items whenever you feel like eating something.

5. Sweet Potato

Fiber content per cup - 7 grams (Baked)

Sweet potatoes could be the perfect replacement for your fried snacks. They are filled with nutrients like fiber, vitamins, and other essential minerals that promote the growth of healthy gut bacteria. It also contains beta-carotene, which is converted to Vitamin A and helps in improving our vision.

Sweet potatoes have both insoluble and soluble fiber.

6. Oatmeal

Fiber content per cup - 4 grams (cooked)

Oatmeals are very popular amongst health freaks due to its high dietary fiber content and also because it's easy to cook. Also, a study has found that people who consumed oatmeals daily have witnessed a drop in their bad cholesterol levels. They were also able to shed some extra pounds.

7. Brussels Sprouts

Fiber content per cup - 3 grams

Brussels sprouts are green leafy vegetables that look like mini cabbages. Besides fiber, brussel sprout is a rich source of Vitamin C essential for tissue repair and boosting our immune system. You can have it as a salad along with our main meals at work.

8. Pinto Beans

Fiber content per cup - 30 grams

Pinto beans have a high amount of fiber per cup at 30 grams (raw) and 15 grams (cooked). Pinto beans are highly nutritious. Having one cup of pinto beans followed by a 200 calorie per day diet can cover up 75% of your recommended folate intake. Folate is a B Vitamin that boosts the generation of red blood cells and has many other health benefits like preventing obesity.

9. Chia Seeds

Fiber content per cup - 34 grams

Chia seeds are almost 40% fiber by weight, making them one of the world's best sources of dietary fiber. One tablespoon of these seeds can contain around 11 grams of fiber to mix up with your meals and have it. Chia seeds also have a high concentration of bone development nutrients per tablespoon, especially calcium that can compensate for 18% of the recommended daily intake.

10. Split Peas

Fiber content per cup - 16 grams (cooked)

If you prefer starting your meal with soup, there can be anything better than a split pea soup. Split pea is counted as a nutrient-dense food that means it has a high nutrient intake but is low in calories. Other than fiber, they contain a good amount of vitamins and other minerals such as Vitamin A, Vitamin K.

It also has B Vitamins like thiamin, folate, and potassium, which assist in muscle growth.

Conclusion

Being a professional myself, I know how hard it is to maintain a healthy diet during work hours. However, that shouldn't become a reason for skipping a nutritious meal full of fiber and healthy fats. The above food items contain a high density of dietary fibers, which flushes out all the unwanted substances out of the body. So, adding some high-fiber food to your diet at work can help you rejuvenate your inner health and stay productive throughout the day.