Low-Fibre Diets Can Quietly Harm Your Heart, Study Reveals

By Adebowale Bello. B.Tech Microbiology, Freelance Health Writer. Medically reviewed by the DLHA team.

Soluble and insoluble high fibre rich foods available in Africa. Click image to enlarge

If you want to protect your heart, don’t wait for symptoms. Start by choosing more fruits, vegetables, legumes and whole grains

Heart disease is often thought of as something that affects people later in life or only those with obvious symptoms like chest pain or shortness of breath. But new research suggests that harmful changes in the heart can begin quietly, long before any warning signs appear and what you eat every day plays a big role in that process.

In many African homes today, diets are shifting. Traditional meals filled with fibre-rich grains, legumes and vegetables are slowly being replaced with processed meat, white bread and sugary drinks. While convenient, these changes could be setting the stage for heart problems in the future.

A recent large study from Sweden has shown that people who eat diets low in fibre and high in red or processed meat are more likely to have dangerous changes in their heart arteries, even before any signs of heart disease appear. For Africans, especially in urban areas where diets are shifting, this study gives us something important to think about.

About the Study

This large research study was carried out using data from the Swedish CArdioPulmonary BioImage Study (SCAPIS). Over 24,000 adults between the ages of 50 and 64 took part in the study between 2013 and 2018. These were people who had not been diagnosed with heart disease, so researchers were looking at early warning signs rather than full-blown illness.

Participants completed detailed food questionnaires, and researchers used CT scans to look inside their heart arteries. This allowed them to check for a build-up of plaque — fatty deposits that can clog or block blood flow. Some plaques are more dangerous than others, especially those that are soft, inflamed or at risk of breaking apart and causing a heart attack.

To understand the link between diet and heart health, the researchers developed a score based on the participants’ food choices. Diets rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes and nuts scored high, while diets high in red and processed meats, sugary drinks and ultra-processed foods scored low. This score also gave special attention to fibre intake, since fibre plays a key role in reducing inflammation in the body.

What the Study Found

People who ate more red or processed meat were far more likely to have high-risk plaques in their heart arteries because of the little fibre in their diet.

It was further discovered that:

• 44 out of every 100 people who ate poorly had some form of plaque, compared to 36 people out of 100 with healthier diets.

• Among those with poor diets, 6 out of every 100 people had serious blockages in their heart arteries — enough to reduce blood flow and raise the risk of heart problems. In comparison, only about 4 out of 100 people with healthier diets had these serious blockages.

• Out of every 100 people with poor diets, about 1 or 2 people had a dangerous type of plaque called non-calcified plaque. This kind is soft, unstable and more likely to break apart and cause a sudden heart attack. In the healthy eating group, it was found in less than 1 person out of 100.

Even after the researchers accounted for factors like smoking, weight, blood pressure and cholesterol, the connection between a poor diet and unhealthy heart arteries remained strong.

What the Study Means for Africans

The findings are especially important for African countries, where lifestyles and diets are changing rapidly. In the past, traditional African meals were naturally rich in fibre from foods like beans, leafy vegetables, yams, millet and plantain. But today, many people are replacing these foods with fast food, white bread, sugary drinks and large amounts of red meat.

In cities across the continent, it’s becoming common to eat out more often or to rely on packaged meals. These convenience foods are often low in fibre and high in salt, fat and sugar which is a dangerous combination.

Related: Ultra-Processed Foods Raises Early Death Risk

This study shows that even before you start feeling chest pain or breathlessness, unhealthy eating may already be silently damaging your heart. The build-up of dangerous plaques can happen quietly over time. By the time symptoms appear, it might be too late to reverse the damage.

Why Eating Fibre Matters

Fibre is often overlooked in everyday conversations about food. Yet it’s one of the most protective parts of our diet. It slows down digestion, helps control blood sugar levels and feeds the good bacteria in our gut. It also reduces inflammation which is a key process in the early stages of heart disease.

Good sources of fibre include:

• Local grains like millet, sorghum and brown rice
• Vegetables like okra, pumpkin leaves and Ugu
• Legumes like beans, lentils and chickpeas
• Fruits like pawpaw, guava, oranges and bananas

Sadly, many of these are being pushed aside in favour of imported snacks, white rice, soft drinks and fatty meats.

Related: 5 Health Benefits of Beans

Wrap up

This study is a clear reminder that what we eat every day matters. A low-fibre, high-meat diet can increase the risk of dangerous changes in the heart even in people who feel fine and have no symptoms. As African diets change with urbanisation and global influence, it is important not to abandon the protective, fibre-rich foods that once formed the backbone of nutritious meals.

If you want to protect your heart, don’t wait for symptoms. Start by choosing more fruits, vegetables, legumes and whole grains. Limit how often you eat red meat and avoid sugary, processed foods as much as possible. Your heart may not say thank you now, but it will in the years to come.

Source: Larsson I, Sun J, Ahmad S, Bergström G, Carl-Johan Carlhäll C-J et al. Low-fibre diet is associated with high-risk coronary plaque features. Cardiovascular Research. 2025;121(8),1204–1214, doi: 10.1093/cvr/cvaf088. Available from here

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Top 10 heart healthy African foods

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Published: August 12, 2025

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