What's The Deal With Fibremaxxing?

We had hardly recovered from the great proteinmaxxing debate of 2025, when we already got a new contender on the market. “Fibremaxxing”, as the internet calls it, is the new trend biohackers seem to be going for.

The concept is simple (and done to death, maybe?). Your average daily diet does not have the required quantities of a particular nutrient - in this case, fibre - so you devise your meals to incorporate enough of it. 

Now this sounds good on paper, but it’s only a while before you realise that every second brand has jumped onto the bandwagon, everyone is hyping up fibre as the miracle nutrient, and, like protein last year, you are left with millions of options for increased fibre intake but with little idea of whether you need extra protein in the first place. Sounds familiar?

With all this in mind, we made a comprehensive guide of everything you need to know about the healthcare trend. Read on.

Why Were Fibres Necessary Again?

Let’s go back to what we learnt in school. Fibre is a kind of carbohydrate we get from plants, but we do not have the enzymes or gut bacteria to digest it. So it forms the bulk of our roughage, ensuring that our bowel movements are smooth and our intestines are working properly. It also binds itself to excess hormones,  cholesterol and toxins and helps your body get rid of them instead of recycling them into the bloodstream. 

But wait, there’s not just one kind of fibre, either. Soluble fibre, found in gums, pectin, oats and psyllium husks, thickens and becomes gel-like when mixed with fluid. These fibres slow down the speed at which we absorb nutrients, preventing those sharp glucose spikes and crashes that mess with your energy, mood and cravings.

Then come the insoluble fibres (your biology textbook would call this roughage). This can’t be changed by our digestion, so it becomes a bulking agent that helps prevent constipation. Insoluble fibres are why whole grains took the spotlight for being good for your health in the first place. You also find them in legumes, green vegetables like spinach and green beans, and in the skins of potatoes and carrots. We advise that you thoroughly wash the skin if you plan to eat them. You cannot be too safe in this regard.

Our final player is the fermentable types of fibre. These can be broken down by bacteria in the sense that they only work as food for the gut bugs and the colon cells. They don’t really make it to the bloodstream as such, and help raise our tolerance to certain foods and regulate our allergy response. Resistant starch falls in this category. 

There are other benefits to fibre consumption, too. A recent study, published in the journal Nature Microbiology, found that diets low in fibre could heighten the risk of bowel cancer. There are also studies showing that eating more fibre can reduce the chances of diabetes by 20-30%. 

If that didn’t convince you of the benefits of the macronutrient, then here’s the surprising bit: a specific type of dietary fibre found in oats, called beta-glucan, acts the same way as Ozempic does, triggering the release of GLP-1, which suppresses appetite. But the effects here are much milder than the weight-loss drug, meaning that increased fibre consumption could help in weight loss without giving you the hollowed-out Ozempic look. 

You can probably see why social media is starting to get obsessed with it.

How To Add More Fibre In Your Diet

Sold on the idea already? Cool, but do hang around to know if you should be fibremaxxing in the first place. If you want to add more fibre to your diet, take it slow and drink more water, first of all. Increase your intake over a few weeks, not days, so your gut and digestion have time to adjust. 

Here are few easy, low-effort ways to incorporate more fibre in your diet:

• Make a seed sprinkle jar - Mix any nuts and seeds you like and keep it on the table or countertop. Add a small handful to meals as you go
  

• Buy mixed grains - Choose rice and grains that combine more than one variety, or ones mixed with lentils or beans.
  

• Add nuts to your butter - Stir chopped nuts, seeds or coconut chips into the jar to boost fibre without changing how you eat it.
  

• Use fresh herbs and spices - They may be small, but they add fibre and support gut health. Chop and freeze them so they are always on hand.
  

• Switch to seeded wholegrain bread - One of the easiest swaps for an instant fibre upgrade.
  

• Try psyllium husk if tolerated - A teaspoon or two in water can help, but only if your gut handles it well.
  

• Start with a fibre-rich breakfast - Think yoghurt with muesli, nuts and dried fruit, wholegrain cereal with fruit, or an omelette packed with vegetables. It helps keep hunger and snacking in check.
  

• Make snacks work harder - Go for nuts, wholegrain toast with nut butter, veggie sticks with hummus, edamame or homemade popcorn.
  

• Add beans to dinner - Toss lentils, chickpeas or beans to your rice or side dish.
  

But Wait, How Do You Know That Your Body Needs More Fibres?

Signs you might be low on fibre are usually pretty obvious once you know what to look for. If you are getting hungry again soon after eating, feeling sluggish or foggy after meals, or dealing with noticeable blood sugar swings, fibre could be the missing piece. Higher than recommended cholesterol levels and gradual weight gain can also be linked.

Digestive issues are another giveaway. Regular constipation, haemorrhoids and unpredictable bowel habits often point to a lack of fibre, as do hormonal ups and downs. Left unchecked over time, a chronically low fibre intake can increase the risk of gut issues like diverticulitis and even bowel cancer.

So, Can You Just Increase Your Fibre Intake At Will?

Extra fibre is not a free-for-all. It is not automatically safe for everyone, and a lot depends on what is going on with your body. 

If you have recently been diagnosed with diverticulitis, loading up on fibre can actually make things worse. In that case, a low fibre diet is usually recommended until symptoms settle. The same goes for irritable bowel syndrome. Many people with IBS struggle with fermentable fibres, which can trigger bloating, cramps and digestive chaos. These include inulin found in foods like asparagus, onions and artichokes, and oligofructose found in bread, cereals, ripe bananas and certain vegetables.

You also need to be careful if you are on medication. Certain fibres, such as pectin from fruit and beta-glucans from oats, can interfere with how the body absorbs some drugs, including aspirin. So if you are diabetic and using insulin, increased fibre intake can lower blood sugar levels, which may mean your dosage needs adjusting.

Jumping from a low fibre diet to a high fibre one overnight can backfire too. It often leads to bloating, constipation and, in some cases, reduced absorption of certain nutrients. As with most things in nutrition, slow and steady works better than going all in at once.

Bottom line. Fibremaxxing is not a one-size-fits-all move. If you have a medical condition or take prescribed medication, talk to your general physician before dramatically changing your fibre intake. Your gut will thank you for not winging it.