What is fibremaxxing?

When your algorithm gets wind of your weight loss goals, your social media feed is soon filled with the latest fad diets.

“Fibremaxxing” is a new trend that claims that increasing your fibre intake can improve your digestive health and even help you lose weight. But is it true?

Fibre is a nutrient that’s a type of carbohydrate. It is an essential part of our diet.

“Fibre contributes to our digestive health, keeps our bowel movements regular and helps keep our bowel healthy,” says nutritionist, Jenny Boss.

Dietary fibre only comes from plants. It’s found in vegetables, fruits, grains, nuts, seeds and legumes.

There are 2 different types of fibre; soluble and insoluble fibre.

Soluble fibre can dissolve in water, forming a gel in your digestive tract.

“This slows down digestion, helps you feel full faster, and can help with weight management,” says Jenny. “It may also lower your blood cholesterol levels and stabilise your blood glucose level.”

You’ll find it in oats and barley, legumes, fruit and vegetables.

Insoluble fibre does not dissolve in water. It absorbs water, and helps make your stool soft and bulky.

“This helps keep your bowel movements regular and prevents constipation. It’s found in high fibre and wholegrain breads and cereals, the outer skins of fruit and vegetables, nuts and seeds.”

There is often more than one type of dietary fibre present in high fibre food.

Fibremaxxing is a new trend on TikTok and other social media sites, that encourages people to maximise their fibre intake.

“It encourages boosting your intake of dietary fibre; something nutritionists and dietitians are very keen on,” says Jenny. “It involves people tracking, competing, and optimising their diet for the highest amount of fibre possible each day.”

The Australian Dietary Guidelines recommend a daily fibre intake of 30g for men and 25g for women, to support good health and reduce the risk of chronic disease. However, a higher target of 38g for men and 28g for women is suggested for further chronic disease risk reduction.

“Some advocates of fibremaxxing suggest exceeding the dietary guidelines and eating between 50g and 100g fibre per day,” says Jenny. “This is both challenging and unnecessary.”

“Eating a high-fibre diet can help maintain a healthy weight, stable blood sugar and lowered cholesterol,” says Jenny.

“High fibre diets can also reduce the risk of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. A high fibre diet is also linked to lower rates of cancer, in particular bowel cancer.”¹

Eating plenty of fibre also feeds your gut bacteria.²

“A healthy and diverse gut microbiota has knock-on health benefits for your body and brain, including your immune system, nutrient digestion, and mood and stress.”

“While fibremaxxing is fairly safe, it potentially can have negative effects,” says Jenny.

“Fibre fills you up, so it’s important not to displace other important foods groups such as proteins, carbs and fats with high fibre foods or supplements.”

“Increasing your fibre intake too quickly can lead to problems such as bloating, cramping and constipation, particularly if you don’t drink enough water.”

“Rapidly increasing fibre may also affect the absorption of essential micronutrients such as iron,” explains Jenny. “If you have IBS or IBD, consult a health care practitioner before increasing your fibre.”

It’s important not to rely on fibre supplements if you’re fibremaxxing.

“We get more types of fibre from food than from supplements, and you’ll get an array of other essential nutrients too,” says Jenny. “Talk to a health care practitioner before taking fibre supplements.”

“If you’re increasing your fibre intake, make sure you do it gradually. It’s also important to drink enough water to prevent constipation.”

Fibre is great for your health, but taking any habit to the extreme or becoming obsessive can undermine your wellbeing.

Instead of ‘fibremaxxing’, aim to meet your daily fibre needs through a balanced, varied diet.

Nutrition Australia offers information and fact sheets on healthy eating.

Eat For Health has information about food essentials and The Australian Guide to Healthy Eating.