Looking for an easy way to help lower your risk of heart disease?  Add more fiber-rich foods, such as fruits, vegetables, legumes (dried beans and peas), and whole grain breads, cereals and pasta, to your diet.

Fiber is the part of plant foods our bodies can't digest.  Not all fibers are alike.  Two types of fiber exist, soluble and insoluble, and each has a different health mission.

The heart benefits of fiber come from the soluble type.  Soluble fiber helps to "eat up" or bind cholesterol while it's still in the digestive tract.  This causes cholesterol to be eliminated from your body instead of being absorbed into the blood.  Oats, barley, some fruits and vegetables (such as apples, oranges and carrots), peas, and beans (such as kidney, pinto and navy) are great sources of soluble fiber.

Insoluble fiber or "roughage" promotes regularity, helps prevent constipation and may provide protection against colon cancer.  Foods rich in insoluble fiber include whole-wheat products, wheat bran and many vegetables (such as cauliflower, green beans and potatoes).

Most adults in this country don't get enough fiber, averaging just 12 to 15 grams each day.  A healthy daily fiber goal should be 25 to 30 grams.  Increase your fiber intake gradually and include plenty of water to help prevent constipation.

Kids need fiber too.  However, their healthy fiber goal is based on their age.  To determine fiber needs for children from three to 18 years of age, add the number five to their age.  For example, a seven-year-old needs 12 grams of fiber each day.

Give your diet a fiber boost by:

• Selecting brown rice instead of white rice, whole-wheat pasta rather than regular pasta and whole-wheat bread instead of wheat or white bread.
• Choosing cereals with at least three grams of fiber per serving.
• Enjoying at least five fruits and vegetables every day.
• Choosing whole fruit more often than fruit juice.  Fiber is found mainly in the peel and pulp that are usually removed from juice.
• Eating legumes (such as black beans, chickpeas and lentils) two to three times a week.  These foods are among the best fiber sources around, providing four to eight grams in every half-cup serving.