Flax (Linum usitatissimum) is a slender plant with narrow leaves and vivid blue flowers. The fibre has long been used to make cloth, rope and sails, while the oil (linseed oil) is added as an ingredient to furniture polishes and house paints. The seeds are very nutritious containing fibre, healthy fats, B-vitamins, calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium and zinc.

Flaxseed oil contains mostly alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) which is an omega-3 fatty acid. This makes flax seed useful for the treatment of arthritis, diabetes and asthma, as well as mood disorders such as anxiety and depression; although, conversion to EPA and DHA is low.

It is also indicated for the treatment of cardiovascular disease and circulatory system disorders where there is chronic inflammation and dyslipidaemia. Anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids balance the fats present in the modern urban diet which consist mostly of pro-inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids and trans fats, ironically on the advice of medical experts who recommend that animal fats be replaced by polyunsaturated vegetable oils (PUFAs) without consideration of their type. The benefit of PUFAs, whether they are derived from plants such as flax and purslane, or oily fish, is attributed only to omega-3 fatty acid.¹

Flax seed has a high mucilage content of 15% which makes it both protective and healing when applied to mucus membranes or the skin. You can take it internally for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome, dysbiosis, peptic ulcer or acid reflux, or apply it externally as an emollient. For this purpose the crushed seeds or oil-cake were traditionally made into a poultice and applied to boils, burns and carbuncles.

The mucilage and fibre content also make flax seed a gentle bulk-laxative, a subject of keen interest to the surgeon Denis Burkitt (1911-1993). He made the observation, during twenty years of surgery in Uganda, that the locals who lived largely on fresh home-grown vegetables, were rarely affected by any modern diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity, diverticulitis, appendicitis, gallstones, haemorrhoids and constipation. This was a diet low in dairy food, meat and processed foods, virtually vegetarian, and full of fibre which he recommended as a panacea for all modern ills.²

Flax seed can also be used to treat coughs and irritation in the respiratory system, infections in the urinary system, or for liver cases where there is gall bladder pain. For these purposes it can be made into a tea consisting of three teaspoons of seed to a cup of boiling water, or half a cup of crushed seeds can be left to soak in water overnight.³ The herbalist Maude Grieve tells us that the addition of a little honey and lemon makes the tea more efficacious and agreeable.⁴

Unfortunately flaxseed oil oxidises easily and therefore quickly goes rancid, so buy the seeds whole rather than as a pre-ground mix called LSA (linseed, sesame and almond). You also have to keep the oil refrigerated in an opaque, sealed container. The oil can be used cold in a salad dressing or put it into a smoothie to add energy and nutrients.

References:

1.         de Lorgeril M, Salen P. New insights into the health effects of dietary saturated and omega-6 and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. BMC Med 2012;10:50.

2.         Burkitt D. Don’t Forget Fibre In Your Diet to help avoid many of our commonest diseases. Harper Collins; 1979.

3.         Bartram T. Bartram’s Encyclopedia of Herbal Medicine. New York: Marlowe & Company; 1998.

4.         Grieve M. A Modern Herbal. London: Tiger Books International; 1994.

5.         Coleby P. Natural Goat Care. Australia: McPherson’s Printing Group; 1993.