Unprocessed Bran
How To Use Unprocessed Bran
If you are having problems getting enough fiber into your diet, you can start to use unprocessed bran. It can be used as a supplement and you can add it to most foods. Most people need thirty to thirty five MG’s of fiber everyday and many people do not even come close to that amount. But unprocessed bran has enough fiber in it, to insure that you receive enough every day.
If you ever wondered why fiber is so important to so many people, it is because it helps with the digestion of foods. While some foods can slow down the digestion process, fiber speeds it up. It actually helps to gently push food and water through the intestines. For people who have problems with bowel movements, taking unprocessed bran can help.
There are very few people who actually have healthy bowel movements. Most doctors say that the average person should have two to three bowel movements a day. It is only suppose to take six to seven hours for food to pass through a body and be eliminated. But too often, people complain that they may have only one a day and sometimes only two or three a week. This can be very unhealthy for the body.
People who are constipated for a long period of time are actually at risk of getting colon cancer. If a stool is allowed to sit in the colon it affects its cells. If you have to also use laxatives for chronic constipation, your risk for getting colon cancer goes up yet again. The lack of water in the digestive system due to constipation can harden stools. This is one of the main reasons that a stool be so hard to pass. Sometimes this condition can be so severe that the impacted stool has to be removed.
Doctors blame this on the average diet. Instead of incorporating vegetables and fruits into the diet, people opt to go to fast food restaurants because it may be easier to do this than to prepare a healthy dinner. Of course this behavior is acceptable once in a while. But if it is done every day the body can start to suffer. So incorporating foods like unprocessed bran can actually help to lower your risk of cancer.
When wheat and oats are processed the hard outer shell is called bran and it is packed with vitamins, minerals and a lot of fiber. Eating bran not only improves digestion but it also is very filling. Dieters can benefits from eating bran muffins in the morning, so that they can go for most of the day with out feeling hungry. This can be because bran absorbs water and swells in the digestive track.
Unprocessed bran is sold in a bulk package and it is ground up. It is recommended that this bran is added to everyday food to enhance its vitamin content. You can add it to cereals and breads and you can even cook with it. It is a great way to sneak fiber into your family’s diet with out them even knowing.
Bran is best added in baked goods. Your family may love cookies, cakes and brownies and the store bought versions are high in fat and sugar. To improve these recipes you can start by adding a few teaspoons of bran right into the recipe. Your family will never know that they are now getting their recommended allowance of fiber and you can be satisfied knowing that you are no longer serving them an unhealthy treat.
Unprocessed bran should be stored in an airtight bag and kept in the refrigerator when you are not using it.