15 Whole Grains High in Fiber

Photo of Daisy Whitbread Written by Daisy Whitbread
BSc (Hons) MSc DipION Photo of Dr. Patricia Shelton Medically Reviewed by
Dr. Patricia Shelton
Evidence Based. References sourced from PubMed. Powered by USDA Nutrition Data.
15 Whole Grains High in Fiber

A high fiber diet promotes gut health and healthy gut bacteria, while decreasing the risk of heart disease, colon cancer, and other serious medical conditions. (1)

Whole grains are rich in nutrients and have high levels of bran, giving them high amounts of fiber. When whole grains are refined—for example, processing whole wheat flour into white flour, or brown rice into white rice—most of the fiber (along with other important nutrients) is removed.

Bulgur (made from whole wheat) has the most fiber of all grains with 8.2 grams (29% DV) per cup. Other grains high in fiber include kamut, teff, pearl barley, quinoa, whole-wheat pasta, buckwheat, oatmeal, whole wheat bread, and brown rice. The current daily value (DV) for fiber is 28 grams. (2)

Below is a list of 15 grains high in fiber ranked by the amount of fiber per cup cooked. To sort the list by 100 gram or 200 calorie serving sizes, see the nutrient ranking tool list of grains high in fiber.

Grains High in Fiber

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How much fiber do you need each day?

The daily value (DV) for fiber is 28 grams per day. (2) This is the amount shown on food labels to help the average person compare the health benefits of different foods. However, for many people, this amount is actually too low.

The adequate intake (AI) is a more accurate daily target, and varies by age and gender. The AI for fiber is up to 38 grams per day. (3) We've included the specific values below for various groups below, so you can determine what your personal target should be.

The average American consumes far less than the DV for fiber, let alone the AI for their demographic group. (4)

Here is the breakout of the adequate intake by age and gender for fiber: (3)

Life StageRDA
Children
1-3 years old19g
4-8 years old25g
Males
9-13 years old31g
14-50 years old38g
50+ years old30g
Females
9-18 years old26g
19-50 years old25g
50+ years old21g
Pregnancy
14-50 years old29g
Lactation
14-50 years old29g
Extensive research has been done to determine how much fiber is needed to provide protection against cardiovascular disease, colon cancer, and other serious health concerns. This research shows that men need more fiber than women in order to get the maximum health benefits, which is why the AI targets are higher for men. (3)

Use the ranking tool links below to select foods and create your own food list to share or print.


View more nutrients with the nutrient ranking tool, or see ratios with the nutrient ratio tool.

Data Sources and References

  1. Thomas M. Barber, Stefan Kabisch, Andreas F. H. Pfeiffer and Martin O. Weickert The Health Benefits of Dietary Fibre Nutrients. 2020 Oct; 12(10): 3209.
  2. FDA on Daily Values
  3. Institute of Medicine Dietary Reference Intakes
  4. Diane Quagliani, MBA, RDN, LDN and Patricia Felt-Gunderson, MS, RDN, LDN Closing America’s Fiber Intake Gap Am J Lifestyle Med. 2017 Jan-Feb; 11(1): 80–85. Published online 2016 Jul 7. doi: 10.1177/1559827615588079
  5. U.S. Agricultural Research Service Food Data Central
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