The neutral monosaccharides in neutral detergent fiber (NDF) extracted from low and high cellulose diets and from feces excreted by seven women consuming the same diet were determined. In addition, apparent digestibilities of the NDF neutral monosaccharides during consumption of both diets were compared. Diets were of constant daily composition and differed only in that the high fiber diet contained 16 g/day of Solka Floc. NDF residues from food and feces were hydrolyzed by the Saeman procedure and the neutral saccharides measured by high performance liquid chromatography. More than 75% of the food NDF from both diets was glucose. Mean fecal NDF was 77% glucose during feeding of the low fiber diet, 89% glucose during the high fiber diet. Xylose was the next most common monosaccharide, accounting for 6-16% of the monosaccharides detected in food and fecal NDF. Concentrations of the other sugars, arabinose, cellobiose, mannose, galactose and rhamnose, ranged from 1 to 6%. Apparent digestibility of the sugars decreased significantly when Solka Floc was consumed: glucose from 85 to 48%; xylose from 76 to 57%; arabinose 89 to 73%; and mannose 86 to 43%. These data indicate that the monosaccharides in NDF from a representative low fiber diet are degraded extensively in the gut, and that adding Solka Floc to the diet decreases the digestibility of all fiber-derived monosaccharides.