Ground Flax

[Mary Jo]

Could someone please tell me what ground flax is? How much should you eat in a day or week? What are it's benefits? What does it look like? Where do you get it? (a health food store I'm assuming) - how do you eat it? I've been incorporating many changes in my diet the past year and am thinking that ground flax is something I should be doing.

I'd appreciate any help you can give.

Thank you.

Mary Jo

[Becky]

Mary Jo


It is ground flax seeds and it looks like wheat germ. You can get the seeds and grind them daily or buy it already ground. Both can be purchased at a health food store. After the bag is opened, you should store it in the frig.

You can sprinkle on yogurt or cereal (which is what I do but I only use flax 2X a week because I am also ER+ but I don't think this will matter much in the future anyway). I put it in our Sunday pancake batter (it can go into any batter - muffins etc). It is really great for you and you won't even notice it.

PS - it looks like toasted sesame seeds before it is ground. After it is ground, it looks like browner wheat germ. There is a golden flax seed variety that looks - golden!

[Odette]

Hi Mary Jo,

great question about the flax.
The way I understand it the flaxseed oil or ground flaxseed is part of the Budwig protocol. Her work is quite fascinating you'll find interesting articles about Johanna Budwig. After my recurrence I started using four tablespoons of groung flaxseed (I grind it in a coffee grinder) mixed into a cup of plain yogurt. I use it as a snack every day or sometimes if I'm ambitious I make oatmeal in the morning and put the flax and the yogurt with some fruit on top.

There is indication in Budwig's work that one should take it with either cottage cheese or yogurt.
This is the only dairy that I use.
With all the research about the omega 3 fatty acids I feel good about using the flax even if it does not prevent/cure cancer it might do some good.
The reason I use the ground flaxseed vs. the flax oil is that I just find it easier and cheaper than the oil. I forget how I decided on the four tablespoons, I must have read it in one of the articles.

Good luck Mary Jo, I'm interested what else we are going to find out about the flax.

Odette

[Mary Jo]

Thank you Odette and Becky. Is 4 T. a day what is recommended? Also, you can mix it in pancake batter and then cook pancakes? You don't mean to sprinkle it on top and then eat do you? And the golden flax vs. the brown/black, is one better than the other?

Thank you.

Mary Jo

[Becky]

Mary Jo


Yes - put it in the pancake batter and then cook the pancakes.

As far as brown versus golden - I don't know which is better but the brown are easier to find and are more common.

[Mary Jo]

What about the amount?

Again, thanks.

Mary Jo

[Becky]

I think you only need about 2 tablespoons a day. I am more careful about this because I am ER+ and really don't want to overdo. I put 1/4 cup in the pancake batter (made with Bisquick which is 2 c bisquick, 2 eggs, 1c milk - I am just putting in the portions so you get a good idea. I end up needing alittle more milk since the ground flax is like "alittle more" bisquick in a way).


Too much flax probably won't do harm but then the muffin, cereal, yogurt, pancake might not taste as good then you won't want to use it but it really does taste good. And as far as the pancakes are concerned, it makes them better for everyone in the family (especially my 15 yr old who only eats white food or macaroni and cheese).

[visualizehealth]

Hey there!
I also wanted to add some info that someone printed for me off of the internet. It was an interview of Jean Wallace, a nutritionist who has studied integrative cancer therapies. She said there was a publication on a "study of women with newly biopsied breast cancer that were fed flaxseed muffins during the interval between biopsy and surgery. At surgery, several markers of tumor aggressiveness were compared and flax consumption was shown to downregulate her-2/neu, increase apoptosis (cell death) and slow proliferation rates."
She also says that there is research showing that many nutrients modify the expression of the her2/neu gene, including: oleic acid (from olive oil), DHA in fish oil, flaxseed lignans, soy genistein and quercetin (found in green apples and onions). You can go to a local health food store and ask about these things. I found the quercetin as a supplement, which was good because I don't like green apples or onions.
Here's to your health!
love,
Annie

Mary Jo,

The study Annie refers to, done in Canada, used 25 grams of flaxseed in muffins. I posted a flaxseed muffin recipe a while ago; you can find it by a search. So if you want to emulate the Canadian study, use 25 grams a day, which is not a small amount.

I use about 20 grams (three very large soup spoons, ground of course) in my oatmeal and then add lots of skim milk and mix it up. Not bad.

Also, last week I went to see a cardiologist about possible herceptin problems. She was more concerned with heart disease and cholesterol not related to herceptin, and said she would recommend a statin but not until I finish herceptin in August. In the meantime, she suggested some natural products and the first on her list was flaxseed, which I'm already taking. Next were grapes (red skin) or grape juice and also cranberry juice. And to increase good cholesterol a handful of almonds a day.

So in two respects at least flaxseed is good for you. Also, today I received an article, via Google Alert, that curcumin has also been show to repress HER2. You can get the latter in a Vitamin Store or use turmeric in your cooking. Great if you like Indian foods, which I do.

Happy eating, Grace

[LAURIE]

I have posted this before but I still think it is weird. When I had allergy test done years ago, it showed I was allergic to flax seed. I don't know what happens to me when I am around it, let alone injest it. I wonder if it only pertains to when it is pollenating and growing in a field or if I eat it. I have not taken the risk of supplementing my diet with flax because of it. If anyone is a allergist out there maybe thay can enlighten me.

[AlaskaAngel]

I use 2 tablespoons a day and when I'm busy I just use it in the 1/4 cup of hot soy milk with a little stevia and a little turmeric, and eat it sort of like a bit of hot cereal. An interesting thing about the ground flax seed is that it is a bit of a thickener. I put it in sphagetti sauce (although I don't eat any noodles and just put the sauce with vegetables or chicken), I put it in soups, and I use it sort of to make a thin sauce over the fish sometimes because I don't use any kind of flour. (I also sneak it into pancakes for my sweetie and stews for him so that he gets the lignans too!)

I really love the taste of the golden flaxseed.... it seems richer and sweeter, but maybe that is my imagination.

We have a Safeway store here and they sell organic flax seed, and the nonorganic flax seed is standard at the regular A & P grocery store here too.

I also try to throw a tiny bit of turmeric into anything I can just to increase the amount I'm getting.

A.A.

[R.B.]

Here is a link on flaxseed which deals with the allergy issue at the end.

What sort of testing was it and how reliable.

Sometimes a rest improved health and digestion will reduce our sensitivities.

There is also sprouted flax seed which is meant to be more digestible if more expensive.

Clearly serious allergies have stark consequences. Why not mention it to your doctor and see if it is Ok to try a tiny bit and see what the result is.

RB

[Mary Jo]

Thank you everyone for your responses to my post. I did buy the ground flax seed at our local health food store and was told that "2T per day was adequate HOWEVER more would not hurt you."


So thanks again for helping me by providing information to me.

Mary Jo