Flaxseed Linum usitatesissimum Other names Flax, Linseed.
Related plant Toad Flax.
Flax is an ancient plant that was found as long ago as Ancient Egypt. Specifically it was seen in the pyramids as linen cloth. Homer wrote that Odyseus used linen to make the sails for his ship. Whether or not Odyseus ever existed the fact is Homer, nine centuries before Christ knew of this herb. Is been known for millenniums. It contains fixed oils, glycosides. Glyco means sugar. Gum, linoleic linolenic acid, mucilage, protein, tannins, wax. The linoleic and linolenic acids are part of Omega3s
Please read below. Fixed oils are lips, fats or waxes from seeds. Gum is derived from cellolose.
One of the earliest uses for flax was the making of linen thoussans of years ago in China. In fact its latin name is Linum. The Oxford Dictionary definition is cloth woven from flax. Sheets, tableclothes, bedsheets and other products are made.
In the late 15th century, the Netherlands painters, the Van Eyke brothers, Hubert and Jan, began to paint with oils. They were the first to do so. One of the benefits of this medium wss it lent itself to varying consistencies. That is could be used as is or it could be thinned out. One of the mediums to do this was linseed oil. This substance is derived from flax. It is still used by artists today.
Flax is rich in EFAs of the Omega3 type. For the record there are Omega6s. However they are not found in Flax. These Omega3s are made up of DHAs (Docosahexaoneic acid and EPAs (Eicoasapentanoic acid) EFA is short for essential fatty acids. That is they are acids mostly made of fat that are essential because the body doesn't produce them. Therby one needs to get them from dietary sources.
Omegas of what ever type are fatty acids. That is they are acids that are mostly fat. However they are good fats.
The proven benefits include reduction of triglycerides. Scientific studies show Eskimos (Inuits) who eat a diet high in Omega3s their triglycerides are greatly lowered. Plus their HDL or good cholesterol is significantly raised.
HDL High Density Lipoproteins. Lipo is Greek for fats. Omages3s can protect people from heart disease including heart attacks(myocardial infarctions, coronary disease). TFhey are helpful in preventing arteriosclerosis. This med term is more commanly known as hardening of the arteries.
Some fresh water fishes are excellent sources of Omega3s, especially salmon. However if one is a vegetarian or is allergic to fish or simply doesn't like fish, Flaxseed is an excellent source of Omega3s.
Precautions include being careful if one is pregnant, nursing, allergic, diabetic. Omegas are high in fat.
These precautions are true of linseed as well. Specific to flax cautions are not to take if severe bowel obstruction of gastrointestinal inflammation. The medical term for precautions or people who shouldn't take a substance is contraindications. It is counter indicated.
Other uses of Flax are it is anti inflammatory. It works as a laxative by providing bulk. It is used this way by some people aa a weight loss aid. One shouldn't rely too much on laxatives since doing so could cause a dependency on them. Other names for laxatives are aperient ( mild laxative), cathartic, purgative ( extra strong laxatives) Perhaps most importantly medically, the lignans may prevent breast cancer. More is written immediately below.
There are many plant chemicals that may either prevent or fight various cancers. The technical term for plant chemicals is phytochemicals. Phyto is Greek for plant. There are dozens of these substances. I will concentrate on only one. The reason for this is so I can write extensively on a specific phytochemical. I chose lignans because they may prevent breast, uterine, ovarian cancers.
True every cancer is horrible, and can be deadly if not caught early enough. I do feel sorry for everyone diagnosed with this terribly cruel disease. However I want to concentrate on the cancer above because it strike women. Technically speaking men can get breast cancer. The statistics are for every one thousand females with the malignancy, one male will get the disease. Plus a woman friend is being treated for breast cancer. Two of my aunts through marriage passed away from this malignancy. On a much more encouraging note, two of my girlfriends are breast cancer survivors. One of them for over a dozen years. She just happens to be my co-worker at a Phila, PA art gallery for people with disabilities.
Lignans can help prevent breast cancer. This in my opinion is the most important use of flaxseed. Breast cancer is one of the most common cancer in women. The older a woman gets the more chance of being diagnosed with it. The statistic that one out of eight women gets breast cancer is based on the fact that the older a woman gets the more chance of being a victim of breast cancer. Men can get the disease too. Please see previous paragraph. Over a million cases yearly, mostly women are reported world wide.
This definition below is from the US National Cancer Institute cancer terminology web site. It is not verbatim.
It is in my own words. It reflects one hundred percent what the NCI states regarding lignans.
Pronounced LIG-nun, lignans are a type of chemical found in various plants that possess estrogenic protective and antitumoregenic qualities. tumoragenic means it helps either to prevent or shrink malignant tumors.
Lignans have been used in some cultures to treat certain medical problems. Other foods , medicinal plants high in these substances are cabbage, cauliflowers, carrots, barley, kale, parsley, peas, soybeans, tomatoes, spinach, strawberries, potatoes.
However one of the best sources of lignans is flaxseed. It is the source of highest quantity and quality of lignans on earth. Highest concentration is in the seeds.
Lignans are phytoestrogens that work by protecting women from harmful breast carcinogens in the environment.
Phytoestrogen means estrogens derived from plants. Phyto is Latin for plant. They block environmental estrogens. This includes estrogens produced by plastics and other chemicals in one's environment. They compete with exogenous estrogens. Exogenous means estrogen from the environment. They help prevent breast cancer with their antiestrogen activity. The lignans are found in the mammalian gut where they are converted (metabolized) into phytoestrogens. According to Master Herbalist, Louise Tenney, the US National Cancer Institute did a study on women whose diet was high in foods with significant quanities of lignans. The results was thirty percent lower cases of breast cancer. This in comparison of women whose eating was low in lignans. This was an epidemiological study done in France. Specifically this was particularly true of post-menopausal women. Study was conducted by the Franch Institut de la National De la sante et de la recherche medicale. English translation. Institute of health and of medical research. Study was published in the Journal of the Nat. Cancer Inst. It was reported too in www.webmd.com. I believe this is the study Herbalist LousieTenney is referring to.
In conclusion its been clinically proven that lignans can and does reduce the chance of getting breast cancer. Various medical and scientific journals report this too.
These include the magazines mentioned previously. Its including Life Extension Foundation magazine, Cambridge (UK) journal, Journal of clinical nutrition, many more.
