Digestive Tolerance

DIGESTIVE TOLERANCE for fibre is the maximum quantity of fibre that humans can ingest without adverse digestive problems, such as flatulence and diarrhoea. The immediate addition of substantial quantities of fermentable fibres to the diet may result in a temporary increase in gas, bloating or bowel movement. The production of gases is a normal feature of the bacterial fermentation of carbohydrates. It is possible that the chronic consumption of diets low in fibre in the typical Western diet may exaggerate these effects when fibre consumption is increased suddenly.