Can Flaxseed Lower Cholesterol in Postmenopausal Women?
Benefits of Flaxseeds
Aside from alpha linolenic acid, flax seed is rich in lignan. Lignan is a type phytoestrogen (antioxidant) and also provides fiber. Researches reveal that lignan in flax seed shows a lot of promise in fighting disease — including a possible role in cancer prevention especially breast cancer. It is thought that lignan metabolites can bind to estrogen receptors, hence inhibiting the onset of estrogen-stimulated breast cancer.
What Does Flaxseed Contain?
The seeds and oil of the flax plant contain substances which promote good health. Flaxseed and flaxseed oil are rich in alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), an essential fatty acid that appears to be beneficial for heart disease. ALA belongs to a group of substances called omega-3 fatty acids.
Lignans are a type of fiber, and at the same time a type of phytoestrogen—a chemical similar to the human hormone estrogen. Flaxseeds are the richest source of lignans. When you eat lignans, bacteria in the digestive tract convert them into estrogen-like substances called enterodiol and enterolactone, which are thought to have anti-tumor effects. Lignans and other flaxseed components may also have antioxidant properties—that is, they may reduce the activity of cell-damaging free radicals. (Flaxseed oil lacks lignans, but some processors add them to their oil.)
Flaxseed Lowers Cholesterol in Postmenopausal Women
At the onset of menopause, a woman’s risk of cardiovascular disease drastically increases. Until recently, women were told that conventional hormone replacement therapy (Premarin and progestin) could offer protection against this increased cardiovascular risk, but studies have now conclusively shown that this is not the case. So, what can a woman do to protect her heart during and after menopause?
One simple, yet powerful action a woman can take is to make flaxseed, one of the World’s Healthiest Foods, a daily part of her healthy way of eating. A study published in the September 2002 issue of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, found that flaxseed, a rich source of phytoestrogens called lignans, reduced total cholesterol levels in the blood of postmenopausal women by an average of 6%.
