Download Fibre Content of Foods - Kettering General Hospital

Nutrition and Dietetic Department
Fibre Content of Foods
Fibre is an important part of the diet that helps with normal digestion. With certain conditions it may be necessary to alter the
amount of fibre in your daily diet. The following is a guide on the quantity of fibre in foods based on average portion sizes with
recommendations on the number of portions per day from each food group. Your health professional will recommend if fibre should
be reduced or increased based on your clinical condition and if particular foods should be avoided altogether.
The recommended intake for the general population
Fruit and Vegetables – at least 5 servings per day
(For low fibre no more than 3-5 servings per day and select foods in the low column only)
Bread, rice, potatoes and pasta – as a minimum, aim for 2 servings with each meal
(for example, a sandwich made with 2 slices of bread is 2 servings)
(For low fibre select foods from the low column only. You can increase the servings per day when following the moderate
and high fibre diet)
Milk and Dairy – 3 portions per day
Meat, fish and eggs – 2 portions per day (For low fibre select foods from the low column only)
Aim for at least 8-10 glasses of fluid per day ideally from a variety of sources (aim for at least 2-3 of the glasses as water)
If you need this information in another format or language telephone: 01536 492510
Further information about the Trust is available on the following websites:
KGH - www.kgh.nhs.uk | NHS Choices - www.nhs.uk
Ref: PI 707 September 2015
Next Review: June 2017
Some points to consider:
 Have balanced meals. Choose a variety of foods and aim to follow the recommended portions
 Peeling and removing seeds lowers the fibre content
The following table places foods into categories based on the grams of fibre per serving
Very low
less than 1 gram per serving
Meats
Casseroles,
stews and
vegetable
alternatives
Vegetables
80g or 3 tbsps
of vegetable,
unless
otherwise stated
Meat, fish or chicken in a sauce
(no vegetables added), chicken
or fish in crumbs or batter,
All plain meats, fish and eggs
are allowed freely
Cooked bean sprouts, radish,
lettuce, raw chicory, ½ courgette,
cooked swede, 3cm piece of
cucumber, marrow, 1 small
beetroot, 1tbsp coleslaw, 1 small
onion, ½ bunch watercress, small
portion mushrooms, celery, 2tbsp
mustard and cress, calaloo, 1
small tomato, gherkins
Low
1 to 2 grams per serving
Medium
2 to 4 grams per serving
Spring roll, liver and onions,
quiche, ravioli, macaroni cheese,
medium size fish or meat pie,
stewed mince, meatballs in
tomato sauce, sweet and sour
pork
Moussaka, kebab with pita
and salad, meat stew, lentil
curry, spaghetti bolognaise,
meat/fish curry with
vegetables, cottage pie, chilli
con carne, meat/vegetable
lasagne or cannelloni,
cheese and potato pie, meat
and vegetable stir-fry,
vegetable burgers, pizza, hot
dog
Falafel, vegetable or bean curry,
vegetable or pulse flan/pasty/pie,
vegetarian shepherds/cottage pie,
vegetable risotto, nut roast
Mange tout, boiled cabbage,
spinach, endive raw, cauliflower,
coleslaw, 1 pepper, sweetcorn, 1
medium tomato, florence fennel,
taro, kohl rabi, 5 spears of boiled
asparagus, leeks, cooked
mushrooms, tinned tomatoes,
turnip
Cauliflower cheese, okra,
brussel sprouts, french/green
beans, celeriac, broccoli,
spring greens, 1 small
avocado, pumpkin, kale, raw
cabbage, aubergine,
ratatouille, carrots, peas,
spring greens
Bean salad, lentils and pulses,
mushy peas, parsnip, broad beans,
avocado
2
High
more than 4 grams per
serving
Potatoes
Very low
less than 1 gram per serving
Mashed potatoes, tinned new
potatoes,
Low
1 to 2 grams per serving
Medium
2 to 4 grams per serving
Oven baked chips, fried
chips, new potatoes, boiled
potato
High
more than 4 grams per serving
Jacket potato
Slice of watermelon, 80g of any
melon, grapes, canned peaches,
canned pears, canned apricot,
canned fruit cocktail, canned
mandarin, fruit juice, canned
mango, pine nuts
× 2 small apricots, ×1 small
peach, cherries, ×2 small or 1
large clementine, dried currants,
dried mixed fruit, ½ raw
grapefruit, strawberries, ×2 small
tangerine/satsuma, raisins, × 2
small plums, pineapple, a slice
of melon, × 1 medium apple,
pecans
Fresh mango, kiwi fruit,
banana, nectarine, stewed
rhubarb, raspberries, × 1
orange, dried figs, dates,
brazil nuts, mixed nuts and
raisins, peanuts, pistachio,
walnuts
Dried apricots, blackberries,
blackcurrants, redcurrants, prunes,
almonds
Jacket potato
(180g)
Boiled – 175g
(4 new potatoes)
Chips – 165g
Mashed
1 scoop (65g)
Roast
1 medium (85g)
Fruit and nuts
30g dried fruit
40g nuts
150ml fruit juice
80g other fruit
unless otherwise
stated
Milk and milk
products
All plain dairy products
3
Bread and
cake
1 slice of bread,
roll, scone,
croissant,
6” French stick
½ bagel
(approximately
35g)
1 naan/paratha
(160g)
2 biscuits
1/8 slice
cake/pie
Cereals, Rice
and Pasta
Cereal-30g or 9
soup spoons
Porridge -50g
(uncooked)
Spaghetti-100g
(uncooked)
Rice-75g
(uncooked)
Very low
less than 1 gram per serving
White bread, croissants, malt loaf,
currant buns, plain scone, Danish
pastry, sweet biscuits and cakes
without nuts or fruit, oat biscuits,
bread sticks, water biscuits,
matzo, flan without dried fruit,
plain cheesecake, waffles,
Yorkshire puddings, sage and
onion stuffing
Low
1 to 2 grams per serving
Rye bread, bagel, crusty white
roll, white pitta bread, toasted
muffin, granary bread, brown
bread, ciabatta, soda bread,
white bread with added fibre,
wheatgerm bread, mince pie,
Christmas pudding, sponge
pudding, fruitcake, fruit scone,
hot cross buns, American style
muffins, wheat crunchies,
potato crisps, poppadums
Medium
2 to 4 grams per serving
French bread stick, brown
rolls, wholemeal bread,
granary rolls, naan,
flapjacks, tortilla chips
High
more than 4 grams per serving
Bran muffin, banoffee pie, fruit
pie/crumble, fruit pies made with
wholemeal flour, paratha,
crispbread, twiglets
Rice Krispies, Corn Flakes,
Frosties, Crunchy Nut Corn
Flakes, Coco-pops, Sugar puffs,
Special K, white rice, pilau rice,
plain risotto,
Small portion spaghetti (limit to
100grams)
Multi-grain Start, noodles, egg
fried rice, brown rice
Ready-brek, Muesli, Clusters,
granola,
Average portion of spaghetti
Porridge, Weetabix, All-Bran, Bran,
Bran Flakes, Sultana bran, Oat
Bran flakes, Shreddies, Shredded
Wheat, wholemeal spaghetti,
brown rice risotto
4
Sweets and
Preserves
Miscellaneous
Very low
less than 1 gram per serving
Plain boiled sweets, fudge,
marshmallows, sherbert
sweets, peppermints, toffee,
Turkish delight, plain or milk
chocolate without fruit or nuts,
marzipan, clear jams, honey,
chocolate spread, lemon curd
Low
1 to 2 grams per serving
Mincemeat, jams containing skins
or pips, marmalade containing
peel
Butter, margarine,
mayonnaise, mustard,
vegetable oils, sugar, jellies,
salt, pepper, vinegar, spices,
clear/cream/ strained soup
without vegetables, syrup,
treacle, sauces, gravy,
custard, ice-cream
Peanut butter, pickles, chutney,
soup containing vegetables
Medium
2 to 4 grams per serving
Chocolate covered bar with
fruit/nuts and wafer/biscuit
High
more than 4 grams per serving
Coconut, soup containing lentils,
pearl barley
Dietician……………………………………Telephone No……………….……
Nutrition and Dietetic Department, Kettering General Hospital, Rothwell Road, Kettering, Northamptonshire NN16 8UZ
On behalf of
Northamptonshire Healthcare Foundation Trust
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