Is MicrobeFiber a Prebiotic?

By Alex White, MD

Image courtesy of MicrobeFiber.com

During my past few blogs I have written about how soluble fiber, such as that contained in MicrobeFiber, is one of the keys to helping your body do everything from digesting food, to warding off such unpleasant conditions as allergies and asthma.  A high-fiber diet can also help combat diabetes, as well as assisting people looking to lose weight, improving their cardiovascular health and it has even been shown to help ward off cancer.  That’s pretty good for something that’s as easy to use as mixing a powder into your food or drink. 

But is MicrobeFiber considered a prebiotic or a probiotic?  This is a question many patients routinely ask me.  While both prebiotics and probiotics are involved with maintaining the health of your gut flora, they do so in different ways. 

Breathe Easy - Fiber is Key in Easing Asthma

By Alex White, MD

Image courtesy of Vimeo.com

Asthma sufferers are all too familiar with the onset of the debilitating condition.  Characterized by a sudden shortness of breath, wheezing, and a coughing spell that just won’t quit, asthma is a serious condition that affects more than 32 million people in the US.  More importantly, asthma causes almost a half million trips to the ER each year, as well as 5,000 deaths.  More frightening still is the fact that since 1980, the prevalence of the condition in children has risen by a staggering 25%.  While the medical profession dispenses rescue inhalers like candy, what medical researchers should really be doing is identifying and rectifying the underlying causes of asthma.

In my recent blog, “Nothing to Sneeze About,” I wrote about the rise in allergies in the developed world.  While there are many factors involved in allergic reactions, one of the most telling is the connection between a low-fiber diet and allergies.  I also pointed out the fact that the reason our forebears had a much lower incidence of allergies had a lot to do with what they ate.  In today’s blog, I would like to explore the evidence that points to diet as being one of the keys to that other pulmonary problem: Asthma.

The Big”C” - Can Fiber Beat Back Cancer?

By Alex white, MD

Image courtesy of commons.wikimedia.org

We all know that fiber plays a very important role in our diets, but what most people don't realize is that getting enough fiber in their diet is essential to more than their digestive system. Many nutritionists, doctors and medical specialists claim that high-fiber diets can do everything from helping people lose weight, to regulating blood sugar levels.   There is even evidence that a high-fiber diet can help reduce the incidence and severity of allergies and asthma.  But what about other conditions and ailments?  Can fiber help fight cancer?

Although there is no conclusive evidence that fiber can cure cancer, there is evidence that fiber can assist in maintaining a healthy body that is better able to ward off the “Big C”. For more than 60 years, clinicians have realized that people who ingested a lot of fiber had a lower incidence of cancer.