Thoughtfully: Are You Getting Enough?
Fibre, Thoughtfully: Small Everyday Choices That Add Up
Nutrition advice can sometimes feel like a long list of things to avoid: less sugar, fewer processed foods, fewer calories, fewer carbohydrates.
But eating well is also about what we thoughtfully choose to include.
Fibre is a good example. It is an important part of a balanced diet, yet most adults in the UK are getting considerably less than the recommended amount. Closing that gap does not require a perfect diet or a complete lifestyle overhaul. It can begin with small, considered choices across the day—including what we put in our breakfast bowl.
How much fibre do we need?
The UK recommendation for adults is an average intake of 30g of fibre a day.
However, the latest National Diet and Nutrition Survey found that adults aged 19 to 64 consumed an average of 16.4g a day—just over half the recommended amount. Only 4% of adults met the recommendation.
That means 96% of adults surveyed were not reaching the recommended intake.
These figures come from the National Diet and Nutrition Survey covering 2019 to 2023, published by the UK Government.
The numbers are striking, but they should not become another reason to feel anxious about food. They are better viewed as an invitation to look at where everyday meals could offer a little more.
Why does fibre matter?
Fibre is sometimes spoken about only in relation to digestion. It does play an important role there: the NHS states that choosing foods containing fibre can help digestion and prevent constipation.
Its relevance is broader, too. Eating plenty of fibre is associated with a lower risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and bowel cancer, as part of an overall healthy and balanced diet. You can read more in the NHS guidance on getting more fibre.
This does not make fibre a miracle ingredient. Nor does adding fibre to one meal compensate for everything else we eat.
It simply means that fibre deserves a considered place alongside the other qualities we look for in food—such as its ingredients, sugar content, nutritional value, taste and suitability for everyday life.
Fibre is not about one fashionable ingredient
Fibre is found across a wide variety of plant foods, including:
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Wholegrains and higher-fibre cereals
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Beans, lentils and chickpeas
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Fruit and vegetables
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Nuts and seeds
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Potatoes with their skins
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Grains such as oats, barley, buckwheat, millet and sorghum
Different foods bring different nutrients and qualities to the diet. This is why the NHS recommends obtaining fibre from a variety of sources rather than depending too heavily on any one food.
At ENRICH, this reflects an important part of what we mean by thoughtful nutrition.
It is not about searching for a single superfood or adding an ingredient simply because it is fashionable. It is about considering what each ingredient contributes, how the ingredients work together and whether the finished food fits naturally into everyday life.
Ancient grains can play a role in that variety. They are not a shortcut to perfect nutrition, but they offer another way to broaden the grains used in our diets beyond the most familiar choices.
Add before you subtract
One of the simplest ways to approach better nutrition is to ask:
What could I thoughtfully add?
That might mean:
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Adding berries, pear, nuts or seeds to breakfast
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Choosing a higher-fibre cereal
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Adding beans or lentils to a familiar soup, curry or pasta sauce
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Choosing wholegrain bread, rice or pasta more often
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Keeping the skin on potatoes where appropriate
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Replacing a low-fibre snack with fruit, vegetables, nuts or oatcakes
None of these choices needs to transform your diet overnight. Their value comes from repetition.
A spoonful of seeds will not provide an entire day’s fibre. A bowl of cereal cannot do everything. But small choices made regularly can help build a more varied and nutritionally considered way of eating.
Why breakfast is a useful place to begin
Breakfast is only one part of the day, but it is often one of the most repeated meals. That makes it a practical opportunity to introduce more fibre without creating an entirely new routine.
The latest National Diet and Nutrition Survey found that the broad category of cereals and cereal products contributed between 43% and 50% of average fibre intake across different age groups. This category includes more than breakfast cereal, but it shows how significant grain-based foods already are within UK diets.
When choosing a cereal, it can be helpful to look beyond one prominent front-of-pack message.
Consider:
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How much fibre does it contain?
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How much sugar does it contain?
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What is the suggested serving size?
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What ingredients have been used?
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What do those ingredients contribute?
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How will it fit with the rest of your meals that day?
In the UK, a food can be described as high in fibre when it contains at least 6g of fibre per 100g. The fibre value can usually be found in the nutrition information on the pack. The NHS fibre guide provides further advice on reading labels and choosing higher-fibre foods.
Where ENRICH fits
This thinking helped shape ENRICH.
Our cereals combine ancient grains with grain fibre, chicory root fibre and other carefully selected ingredients. Each 25g serving provides 4.3g of fibre, making ENRICH high in fibre, while also being low in sugar.
That serving contributes just over 14% of the 30g adult daily recommendation. It is not the whole answer—and we would not claim that one bowl closes the fibre gap—but it can provide a meaningful start.
Fibre is also not included simply to create a prominent claim on the front of the box. It forms part of a wider approach to formulation in which ingredients are selected for a reason, considered together and made into food that can fit real mornings.
That is thoughtful nutrition in practice: not chasing one nutrient in isolation, but trying to make an everyday choice work a little harder.
Four opportunities to add fibre across your day
At breakfast
Choose a higher-fibre cereal and add fruit, nuts or seeds.
At lunch
Try wholegrain bread, a baked potato with its skin, or add beans and lentils to soups and salads.
As a snack
Choose fruit, unsalted nuts, vegetable sticks, oatcakes or crackers with hummus.
At dinner
Include vegetables, pulses or wholegrains such as brown rice, wholewheat pasta or bulgur wheat.
If your current diet is relatively low in fibre, increase it gradually and drink plenty of fluids. Anyone with an existing digestive or medical condition should seek individual advice from a doctor or registered dietitian before making significant dietary changes. The NHS provides further guidance on fibre, fluids and digestion.
Thoughtful nutrition is built over time
Better nutrition rarely comes from one dramatic change, one fashionable ingredient or one supposedly perfect food.
It is built through the choices we make repeatedly: choosing a little more fibre, eating a broader variety of plant foods and looking for products whose ingredients contribute something meaningful.
Breakfast is only one meal. But because it is part of so many everyday routines, it can be a thoughtful place to begin.
Start your morning thoughtfully.
Discover four high-fibre, low-sugar ENRICH blends, thoughtfully formulated with ancient grains and carefully selected ingredients.
Explore the ENRICH Discovery Box