DIETARY FIBERS
Importance of Dietary Fibre Fiber forms the skeletal system of plants. Without it no plant or tree would be able to stand upright. Dietary fiber consists of those parts of the plant foods that cannot be digested by enzymes or other digestive secretions in the alimentary canal. Dietary fiber plays an important role in the maintenance of health and prevention of diseases. There is sufficient evidence to suggest that an artificial depletion of fiber as in case of refined cereals and sugar has over the last 100 years contributed to several degenerative diseases. Recent studies in this area indicate that sufficient intake of fiber-rich diet may help prevent obesity, colon cancer, heart disease, gallstones, irritable bowel syndrome and diabetic conditions. Studies have also established that dietary fiber is a collection of elements with a variety of functions rather than a single substance with single function as was assumed earlier. This new...