Flax seeds were first cultivated in Babylon and have come a long way since then. Today, even medical practitioners recognize their importance and often prescribe them to be included in daily diet. Flax seeds have the ability to lower bad cholesterol, regulate the estrogen levels and prevent heart disease. Flax seeds also give strength and mobility to bones and muscles. Please note that flax seeds in high quantity can harm the body. Flax seeds contain calories and can lead to weight gain. Please consult your doctor for measurements; intake would depend upon the current condition. However, having 1-2 tbsp every day is absolutely safe.
Flax seeds for Breast Cancers
Flaxseeds have a large quantity of lignans, which is a type of phytoestrogens. They are similar in structure and composition to our body’s estrogen. Lignans inhibit the growth of both ER- and ER+ cancer cells. Flax seeds contain 335 mg of lignans per 100 grams of food. Second in the category come sesame seeds with 132 mg followed by chickpeas with 35 mg of lignan content.
Research Study (Source: http://www.scicombinator.com/articles/207055)
A study was conducted in 2013 April titled “Consumption of flaxseed, a rich source of lignans, is associated with reduced breast cancer risk”.
The purpose of the study was “To investigate the association between intake of flaxseed-the richest source of dietary lignans (a class of phytoestrogens)-and breast cancer risk”. The result of the study was as follows:
“Flaxseed or flax bread was consumed at least weekly by 21 % of control women. None of the 19 variables assessed were identified as confounders of the associations between flaxseed or flax bread and breast cancer risk. Consumption of flaxseed was associated with a significant reduction in breast cancer risk (odds ratio (OR) = 0.82, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 0.69-0.97), as was consumption of flax bread (OR = 0.77, 95 % CI 0.67-0.89)”.
“This Canadian study is, to our knowledge, the first to report on the association between flaxseed alone and breast cancer risk and has found that flaxseed intake is associated with a reduction in breast cancer risk. As dietary intake of flaxseed is modifiable, this finding may be of public health importance with respect to breast cancer prevention.”
The above research proved that flax seed reduces the risk of breast cancer in postmenopausal women by 28% and flax seed bread reduces the risk of breast cancer in both pre and postmenopausal women by 26%. The daily intake prescribed under this experiment was 5.4 mg of flax seeds every day. This quantity was considered as a minimum for it to offer protection against breast cancer.
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