Mikah SargentYou probably know a high-fiber diet is good for your digestive system, but did you know it could help some individuals live longer?
"A new study finds eating a high-fiber diet after a heart attack may help you live longer." (Via NBC)
According to the BBC, researchers looked at the data of two nearly nine-year U.S. studies "involving more than 4,000 men and women who had survived a first heart attack and had provided information about their usual diet via questionnaires."
And KCBS reports what researchers found was extraordinary. "Boston researchers followed heart attack survivors and found that those who ate the most fiber from grains had a 25 percent lower chance of dying."
A writer for LiveScience points out another incredible fiber feat: "Every 10-gram increase in fiber intake per day corresponded to a 15 percent lower risk of dying during the study period."
Scientists, of course, can't definitively say if the high-fiber diet was the actual cause of an increased lifespan. Even still, "CBS This Morning" spoke with one doctor who says fiber has all kinds of health benefits.
DR. TARA NARULA: "It can help lower your blood pressure. It can lower your LDL, which is the bad cholesterol. It can generally decrease inflammation. It helps modulate your blood sugar so you're less tendency to develop diabetes, and it also makes you feel full quicker." (Via CBS)
One important note: Science World Report says of the three types of fibers studied — cereal, fruit, and vegetables — "only cereal fiber has a strong link with enhanced long term survival after heart attack."
Raisin Bran, anyone? The study was published in the journal BMJ. (Via Flickr / Albert Huynh)
