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Move over, protein. There’s a new dietary trend that’s doing the rounds. Fitness aficionados and wellness influencers are now “fixated” on how to “increase your daily fibre intake”, said Amelia Bell in Harper’s Bazaar.
Fibremaxxing is the latest addition to the “wellness glossary” and for good reason. Apart from its role in “digestion, weight management and gut health”, fibre also helps “stave off diseases” and reduce inflammation. A high-fibre diet can be highly beneficial but like any other TikTok-fuelled obsession, there is always a risk of “overdoing” it if one does not proceed with caution.
Fibre acts as “food for the microbiome”, said nutritionist Rhian Stephenson. Eating fibre-rich food “slows gastric emptying and carbohydrate absorption”, which helps stabilise blood sugar levels and provides metabolic support by “increasing the feeling of fullness”. This is why those with a healthy fibre intake often see “less weight gain and easier weight maintenance”.
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According to NHS data, “most adults don’t come even close to hitting the daily recommendation of 30 grams”, said Dean Stattmann in GQ. Such a low level of consumption could take an “insidious toll on our collective health”.
Fibre is the indigestible part of plants that gives them their structure. It works as a gut cleanser by “shuttling away things that might otherwise overstay their welcome”. Without it, unmoving stools can “create little ‘pouches’ in the colon, called diverticuli, which can trap bacteria”, said Dr Dana Ellis Hunnes, a clinical dietician at UCLA Health. The bacteria can “potentially increase the risk of colon cancer, irritable bowel syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, and just inflammation in general”.
Consuming plant-based foods is a great way to increase fibre intake. Lentils, beans, chia seeds and almonds are all rich in the nutrient. There are also many oral supplements available to help reach the recommended 30g daily intake level.
However, it is important to note that these supplements “don’t behave in the body in the same way that fibre from a whole food does”. Apart from fibre, whole foods have vitamins and minerals as well as water. This makes them more “synergistic” and less dehydrating.
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The fibremaxxing trend certainly “carries a message” that many health professionals have been “banging the drum about for years,” said Polly Weeks on the BBC. But there’s a lot “we still don’t know about the gut and its microbiota” and one should be wary of “uninformed views, extreme advice and miracle quick-fix claims”.
Kieran Tuohy, a professor of energy metabolism and microbiome at the University of Leeds, said trying to “fibremax” on powders could be a “worrying” trend but “self-regulating” fibre levels by consuming plenty of whole foods is a great step to take.
Deeya Sonalkar joined The Week as audience editor in 2025. She is in charge of The Week's social media platforms as well as providing audience insight and researching online trends.
Deeya started her career as a digital intern at Elle India in Mumbai, where she oversaw the title's social media and employed SEO tools to maximise its visibility, before moving to the UK to pursue a master's in marketing at Brunel University. She took up a role as social media assistant at MailOnline while doing her degree. After graduating, she jumped into the role of social media editor at London's The Standard, where she spent more than a year bringing news stories from the capital to audiences online. She is passionate about sociocultural issues and very enthusiastic about film and culinary arts.
