How to Include Water With a High Fiber Diet

Water is so vital you would die in as little as a few days if you were deprived of this fluid. Besides keeping you alive, water moves waste out of your body, and by doing so it aids in the prevention of irregularity, or constipation. When you are on a high fiber diet, you need more water than usual to keep the fiber moving through your intestines. Fortunately, including water with a high fiber diet occurs naturally as part of maintaining a well-balanced diet.

Instructions

• 1

  Drink water with your meals and over the course of a day. The simplest way to include water with a high fiber diet is to drink it from a glass, bottle, mug, or other type of beverage holder. Betty Greer, PhD., R.D., Professor at the University of Tennessee Extension states men require 12 cups of water a day and women require nine. Buy flavored water if you find plain water distasteful, or squeeze some lemon or lime juice in your water for palatable flavor.

• 2

  Eat lots of fruits and vegetables. Fruit and vegetables have a high water content. Some are made up of more than 80 percent water. Excellent choices include lettuce, watermelon, broccoli, grapefruit, orange juice, carrots and apples. Eat soups that contain vegetables for more water in your diet. Soups that contain vegetables supply you with water from the broth, plus water from the vegetables. Vegetables are also a good source of fiber.

• 3

  Eat grain products. Get water with your fiber from rice. Cooked rice contains both, and ½ cup of this grain is 69 percent water. Also eat cooked pasta. One-half cup of this grain food is made up of 66 percent water. You can get water from whole wheat bread and bagels, too. A slice of whole wheat bread is 38 percent water. Half a bagel is 29 percent water.

• 4

  Consume cottage cheese and yogurt. Cottage cheese and yogurt are high in water content. To include water with high fiber, have fresh fruit with these dairy foods. Mix berries into cottage cheese or yogurt, or have an apple with either one of these two foods. One-half cup of cottage cheese is 79 percent water and a cup of yogurt is 75 percent water. One medium apple is 84 percent water.

• 5

  Include tuna, poultry and beef in your diet. Tuna is 70 percent water per 3 oz serving, roasted chicken is 65 percent water per 3 oz serving and roasted fat-free beef is 64 percent water per 3 oz serving. Eat a baked potato with these protein foods for fiber and water. One medium baked potato is 71 percent water.