High fiber foods, list of sources of dietary fiber

Fruit and sweet corn: sources of fiber

Plants are the main source of dietary fiber (fibre). All plants contain fiber. Some only have a little, but others are rich in both soluble and insoluble fiber. Within a plant different parts of it may have different fiber content. Plums are a good example. Plum fruit has thick skin around a soft and juicy pulp. Plum skin is a source of insoluble fiber but the pulp has a lot of soluble fiber.1 Plants which are rich in fiber can be eaten as they are. Alternatively they can be processed in order to provide diet supplements rich in fiber.

Vegetables, fruit and other products rich in fiber

Sources of soluble fiber:

legumes (green beans, soya beans)
oats
some fruit and fruit juices (plums, bananas, pulp of apples and pears, apricots, peaches)
vegetables such as broccoli, carrots, artichokes, Brussels sprouts, kohl rabbis, parsnips
tubers of root vegetables such as sweet potatoes and onion (their skins is the source of insoluble fiber)
seed husk of psyllium (a mucilage soluble fiber)

Sources of insoluble fiber:

Whole foods
wheat, corn and barley bran
nuts
potato skins
seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, sesame)
vegetables such as cauliflower, Chinese (Peking) cabbage, spinach, tomatoes
fruit such as raspberries, gooseberries, kiwi, avocado, bananas.

There are differing opinions on the methods which should be employed to measure soluble and insoluble fiber contents in food products. Additionally, some products contain characteristics which mean that they can be classified as either type of fiber. On occasions this leads to considerable differences in the interpretations of various test results.

Table 1. Soluble and insoluble fiber contents in food product (grammes of fiber per 100 grammes of product).2

Name	Total fiber content (g)	Insoluble fiber (g)	Soluble fiber (g)
Bread and rolls
White roll	3,00	1,89	1,11
Keiser (wheat) roll	2,30	1,66	0,62
Wheat roll	4,14	3,06	1,08
Wholewheat roll	6,89	5,69	1,19
White bread	2,28	1,28	1,00
Corn bread	2,12	1,78	0,32
Wheat bread	4,12	3,04	1,08
Wholewheat bread	6,91	5,71	1,20
Croissant	1,56	0,60	0,86
Corn tortilla	5,19	4,38	0,81
White tortilla	3,30	2,30	1,00

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References:

1. Stacewicz-Sapuntzakis M, Bowen PE, Hussain EA, Damayanti-Wood BI, Farnsworth NR (2001) Chemical composition and potential health effects of prunes: a functional food? Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr. 41(4):251-86. PMID: 11401245
2. Spiller G. (2001) Crc Handbook of Dietary Fiber in Human Nutrition. CRC Press, Boca Raton.