"A good source of fiber." Sound familiar? You've likely seen this sentence on everything from boxed cereals to a container of yogurt. But do fiber-fortified foods (that is, foods that have synthetic fiber specifically added to them) really improve your health? It's a little unclear.
It is generally believed that people with high-fiber diets have lower rates of heart disease. But according to John Swartzberg, a professor of public health at University of California, Berkeley, no one really knows why fiber-rich foods appear to prevent heart disease. It might be the fiber itself or something else entirely.
So why put fiber in at all? Because people are likely to choose junk food over fruits and vegetables, according to some food scientists, so you might as well put fiber in those products, even if the benefits are unclear.
Read More: Is Adding Fiber To Food Really Good For Your Health? | NPR
(Image: Chow)
How To Cook Fluffy, Tasty Quinoa
True Greek Recipe: Paximadi Bread Salad with Tomatoes, Feta and Capers
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Monterey Pitcher fr...
Before & After: Emily Henderson Transforms a Senior's Studio Space
Monica & Austin's Charming Bungalow
Most people definitely need more fiber (average intake is around 15g, and adult men are supposed to get 38g), but it's probably best to get it from food. Less meat, more beans!
I feel you are always best going with the real thing. Get your nutrients, fiber and "good stuff from real, whole foods. This is how your body was designed to function! We weren't made to handle all this man-made, enhanced, modified stuff over extended periods of time.
i don't know that they hurt anyone (i've seen chicory root, at least a natural source, as an additive in these types of products), but i agree that naturally fiber rich foods would be my first choice.
it doesn't seem that different than taking a fiber supplement.
I dont know about it's heart benefits but boy does it benefit your digestive system!
Chicory root + my intestines = destructive gas.
Example: http://www.pleasegodno.com/archives/20-1-cup-Kashi-GoLEAN-Crunch-+-12-cup-milk-Endless-stomach-churning-gas..html
I'm reminded of what Michael Pollan wrote: eat food, not too much, mostly plants. You can't go wrong getting your fiber this way.
I take supplements and/or all bran cereals because even when eating the recommended daily 25 g of fibre my digestive system insist it's not enough for me.
Oh my gosh, ANTXOA! Thank you for posting that! I thought I was the only one!
My nutritionist told me that I should try to eat 30g of fiber every day, because it lowers cholesterol. The fiber molecules bind to the cholesterol, which is then excreted, instead of reabsorbed. Reabsorption would then lead to high cholesterol and ultimately heart disease. Sorry if that was a bit gross to think about.
Not to mention, doesn't a lot of fiber help you feel full? Reason enough for me. I need all the help I can get.
@WITTYNAME Yes, soluble fiber tends to slow digestion down, leading to a more gradual blood sugar response. Ultimately, that gives your body more time to react to all the hormonal signals associated with appetite. Instead of a spiking and crashing (where you still end up hungry), you feel fuller longer. (FYI, I'm a dietitian!)
I agree with what most of commenters have said. How about getting fiber from the real source--fresh food? That's easier and cheaper! Besides, it's all of the fiber AND the micronutrients in fresh food that work together to make us healthy, not just the one nutrient.
My husband and I get plenty of food-fiber but he supplements with inulin to help control a GI tract health issue. No amount of that high-quality fresh food fiber ever helped him like the supplement.
And fiber levels do affect risk for colon cancer, and diverticulitis, although in both cases the causality is mixed up with other variables so it's hard to say for sure what its role is. But it doesn't hurt!
I say the more natural the better. It's easy to get enough fiber if you eat a whole foods diet. Adding fiber to processed foods is not a scheme to get people healthier, it's just a marketing ploy trying to get people to buy the food because they think it's healthy for them. And added fibers and gums (chicory and guar..) to foods are notorious for causing painful gas and abdominal distention. If you need to supplement, they sell some really great products at the health food store. Psyllium is good but it can also cause GI distress. Garden of Life sells a really good product called Super Seed Beyond Fiber and another called Raw Fiber. As with all fiber supplements, it's better to start start slow especially if you haven't been getting enough from your diet. (This is especially true for psyllium based products!!)
I know I've read, in more than one place, that getting too much fiber (i.e. supplements and fortified foods) can cause you to become fiber-dependent, to where your digestion requires increasingly more fiber just to function normally. Unless you have a very specific health concern where your doctor or dietician has recommended supplementation, it may do you more harm than good. Like Rosebud said, if you're following Michael Pollan's infamous trifecta, you're well on your way to plenty of fiber and all the other benefits of naturally fiber-rich foods.