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Flaxseed is one of the oldest crops in the world. It’s full of fibre, protein, omega-3 fatty acids, and other essential nutrients. For this reason, flaxseed has been found to have a number of health benefits that make it well worth adding to your diet.
And with its nutty, yet mild flavour and crunchy texture, flaxseed makes an easy and tasty addition to pretty much any recipe.
With this in mind, we’ve partnered with Linwoods Health Foods, to cover the various health benefits of flaxseed and offer ideas on how to add more flaxseed to your diet. Through their range of superfoods, Linwood Health Foods aims to enhance the health and wellbeing of all their customers.
What is flaxseed?
Flaxseed, also known as flax or linseed, is a seed that comes from the flax plant.
There are brown and golden flaxseed varieties – both of which are equally nutritious. Flaxseed is particularly celebrated for its rich fibre and omega-3 content, as well as being an excellent source of plant-based protein.
Just one tablespoon (7g) of flaxseed contains…
- 37 calories
- 1.3g protein
- 3g carbohydrates
- 1.9g fibre
- 3g fat
Flaxseed is also rich in a number of essential nutrients, including vitamin B1, B6, calcium, iron, magnesium, and potassium.
Flaxseed generally comes in three main forms: whole, milled (ground), or as an oil. According to experts, eating milled flaxseed offers the greatest benefits. This is because it’s easier to digest than whole seeds (which also allows nutrients to be absorbed more easily by the body), and flaxseed oil contains less fibre.
8 health benefits of flaxseed
With its impressive nutritional profile, it’s unsurprising that flaxseed offers a number of health benefits that make it worth adding to your diet.
We’ll cover some of these below…
1. Flaxseed may reduce blood pressure
Flaxseed is well celebrated for its ability to reduce blood pressure levels.
This scientific review found that supplementing with flaxseed products like flaxseed powder could significantly reduce levels of both systolic and diastolic blood pressure. The results of another review also found that taking flaxseed every day for three months could lower blood pressure levels by 2mmHg.
Experts have also suggested that flaxseed may be particularly effective for people with high blood pressure. For example, this 12-week study found that consuming 30g of flaxseed each day reduced blood pressure in people with hypertension.
These findings are significant, as some research suggests that a 2mmHg reduction in blood pressure levels lowers the risk of coronary heart disease and stroke by 6% and 14%, respectively.
2. Flaxseed may help lower cholesterol levels
Research has suggested that flaxseed may help to lower cholesterol levels.
In this one-month study of people with peripheral artery disease, consuming 30g of milled flaxseed each day reduced LDL (bad) cholesterol levels by 15%.
Similarly, this 12-week study of people with high blood pressure found that consuming 30g of flaxseed each day resulted in significant reductions in total cholesterol, blood pressure, and body mass index (BMI).
Experts believe these effects could be due to the fact that flaxseed is rich in soluble fibre, which, because it isn’t absorbed in the intestine, can bind to cholesterol and remove it from the body. Therefore, it’s estimated that eating between 5g and 10g of soluble fibre a day can help to lower total and LDL cholesterol levels by 5 to 11 points (total cholesterol should be below 200 and LDL cholesterol below 100).
3. Flaxseed may boost heart health
The positive impact that flaxseed has on cholesterol and blood pressure is beneficial for heart health.
But it’s not just these factors that are worth mentioning here. Flaxseed’s rich omega-3 content – particularly, alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) – has been shown to lower the risk of heart disease by reducing inflammation in the arteries.
For example, a number of different studies have linked ALA with a reduced risk of heart attacks, stroke, and chronic kidney disease; reporting an overall 73% lower risk of death compared to people with lower ALA intake.
Plus, this study found that people with heart disease who were given 2.9g of ALA per day for one year had significantly lower rates of heart attacks and death than those in the control group.
4. Flaxseed can improve digestion and gut health
Because flaxseed is rich in fibre, it can help to support regular bowel movements – which can be particularly beneficial for people who struggle with constipation-related IBS.
For example, in this study of people with constipation-related IBS, flaxseed not only helped to ease constipation, but also reduced abdominal bloating and pain too.
When it comes to digestive health in general, flaxseed is great because it offers prebiotic effects by feeding good bacteria in the gut. Flaxseed also contains both soluble and insoluble fibre, and having balanced amounts of these is important for gut health and digestion.
In this study on mice, flaxseed fibre caused the largest improvement in digestive health (over soy-based fibre and cellulose fibre) because gut bacteria reacted well to flaxseed shells.
5. Flaxseed may promote blood sugar control
Research has found that flaxseed may have properties that help to promote blood sugar control and stabilise blood sugar levels.
This scientific review found that whole flaxseed could help to lower blood sugar and stop insulin resistance; a condition that prevents the body from being able to regulate blood sugar levels effectively.
Experts believe that flaxseed’s effect on blood sugar may be down to its soluble fibre content. Studies have shown that soluble fibre slows down the digestion and absorption of sugar in the blood, which in turn, may reduce blood sugar levels.
As a result of these findings, flaxseed may be particularly beneficial for people with type 2 diabetes.
However, because flaxseed’s effect on blood sugar levels rests largely on its soluble fibre content, the benefits apply mostly to whole flaxseed rather than flaxseed oils (because flaxseed oil lacks fibre).
6. Flaxseed may support healthy weight loss and weight management
A number of studies have suggested that adding flaxseed to your diet may support healthy weight loss and help with weight management. As shown in this scientific review, supplementing diet with flaxseed led to significant reductions in belly fat, bodyweight, and BMI.
Again, this is largely due to flaxseed’s soluble fibre content, which is known to slow down digestion and leave you feeling fuller for longer.
For example, this study found that drinking flax fibre tablets containing 2.5g of soluble fibre reduced overall appetite and feelings of hunger.
The antioxidant properties of flaxseed – mainly from the plant compound lignans – have also been found to contribute to healthy weight loss.
7. Flaxseed may help to reduce menopausal symptoms
Some research has suggested that eating flaxseed may help improve menopausal hot flushes.
For example, one study found that women who added 20g of milled flaxseed to their diet twice a day experienced half as many hot flushes as they did before. The intensity of their hot flushes also reduced by over 50%.
8. Flaxseed may help to prevent cancer
Flaxseed contains high amounts of lignans – plant compounds which have been studied for their cancer-fighting properties. Amazingly, flaxseed contains between 75-800 times more lignans than other plant foods.
Some studies have linked consumption of flaxseed with a reduced risk of breast cancer – particularly for postmenopausal women.
Other test-tube and animal studies have found that flaxseed may help to protect against skin, blood, lung, and colorectal cancer. But, further research is still needed to determine its impact on humans.
How can I add flaxseed to my diet?
Many of the benefits noted in this article were the result of people adding just 7g (one tablespoon) of ground flaxseed to their diet per day. Experts advise eating no more than 28g-35g (four to five tablespoons) of flaxseed per day.
Many people prefer to eat ground flaxseed or flaxseed oil because the whole seeds can be difficult to digest. Both options are good, though it’s worth remembering thatwhile flaxseed oil is still an excellent source of omega-3 fatty acids, it doesn’t pack as much fibre – and like any other oil, should be eaten in moderation.
Experts advise eating between one and four tablespoons of ground flaxseed per day for optimum benefits. Flaxseed is incredibly versatile so there are plenty of ways you can add it to your diet.
For example, you could add some flaxseed to your morning porridge, whisk it into a salad dressing, and add it to smoothies, yoghurts, and condiments like mayonnaise. For inspiration, check out these 17 healthy and delicious flaxseed recipes from Insanely Good Recipes. You’ll find everything from flaxseed pancakes to flaxseed wraps and homemade granola.
Final thoughts…
Flaxseed may seem fairly unassuming, but it packs a real nutritional punch – and the good news is that you only need to add a small amount to your diet to enjoy the benefits.
So if you’ve been looking for a quick and easy way to boost your wellbeing, flaxseed is well worth the consideration. Luckily, as versatile it is, you won’t be short of delicious ways to enjoy it either.
Linwoods Health Foods has a range of flaxseed products available to buy on their website – from regular milled flaxseed to delicious mixes like flaxseed, sunflower, pumpkin, and goji berries. They also have a flaxseed product called Menoligna, which has been specially developed for women during the menopause stage of life – and contains chia seeds too.
For further health and diet tips, head over to the diet and nutrition section of our website. Here you’ll find everything from essential vitamin and mineral information, to best foods for brain and heart health.
Is flaxseed a part of your diet? Have you experienced any of the flaxseed-related health benefits mentioned above? We’d be interested to hear from you in the comments below.
