Milled Flax Seed

Over the past few years, a growing body of scientific evidence has begun to reveal the wonders of one of the world’s oldest domesticated plant foods—flax. Flax seed in particular contains a tightly packed wallop of healthy elements that can improve one’s health and benefit the mind and body in numerous ways. And while it can be challenging for those unfamiliar with flax seed to incorporate it into their diet, virtually anyone who gives it a chance comes to rely on it as a core element of their everyday health.

Background

Flaxseed was first cultivated in the Fertile Crescent in the fourth millennium B.C., and its domestication is thought to have played a large role in the rise of civilization itself. Not only was it a staple food crop, but its toughness also made it useful in the production of cloth, and flax cloths have been found in a wide variety of ancient archaeological sites, including the Egyptian mummy tombs. Today, flax is the primarily element in linen fibers.

Since ancient times, flax has spread throughout the world and has been a major crop in places as wide-ranging as Russia, the European Alps, and colonial North America. Today it is considered an alternative crop in many areas of the world, and the land devoted to flax is much smaller than that devoted to other major crops. Yet the last few years have seen a dramatic rise in interest in flax and flax seed, and the crop is now a major area of growth.

Uses of Flax Seed

While flax itself is useful as an element in fiber, its seeds are the primary focus when it’s raised as a food crop. The seeds are useful for more than just food, however. They’re also used to make linseed oil, an edible oil used in many non-food-related applications, and they’re used as ingredients in a variety of products such as soap, hair gels, dye, paper, and even a few types of medicine. And because some varieties of the plant, with their large, bright flowers, are gorgeous to look at when well cultivated, flax is commonly included in ornamental gardens.

In its fiber uses, flax has always been cultivated for its toughness and ease of use. As an element of linen, it has been used since even before it was domesticated a few thousands of years ago. And in more modern times, especially since the Industrial Revolution, innovators have come up with all sorts of new and interesting uses for twine, rope, lace, and sheeting made from flax. With all the new methods available for processing the plant, it is now as valuable as it has ever been.

The Nutritional Benefits of Flax Seed

But of course, in this article we are primarily concerned with flax seed as a food. While we may still have much to learn about all the nutritional elements tightly packed into small flax seeds, we do know many things about the seeds’ benefits. Perhaps most notably, flax seed is a good source of omega-3 fatty acids, a category of nutrients that are generally most abundant in fish and some other rarely eaten foods. This makes flax seed a great replacement to anyone who never or only rarely eats fish. It has many of the same benefits.

In this sense, linseed oil, derived from flax seed, has much in common with olive oil, another food product that has recently been shown to have some surprising health benefits. Both contain some of the best kinds of good fats available in the natural world. And incidentally, both are great for cooking and for enhancing the flavors of many types of solid cooked foods.

Flax seeds are also abundant in dietary fiber, they’re a moderately good source of protein, and they’re a good source of a range of nutrients, including Thiamine, Vitamin B6, Magnesium, Phosphorous, Iron, Zinc, and Niacin. It has smaller but not negligible amounts of Riboflavin, Calcium, and Vitamin B5. Among the many benefits found to result from flax seed consumption are the following.

• Flax seed can ease symptoms among people with some kinds of cancer, including breast cancer and prostate cancer. One finding showed that the seed possibly slowed the growth of tumors.
• The omega-3 fatty acids in flax seed can help the cardiovascular system in numerous ways. This occurs mainly because the fatty acids help prevent hardening of the arteries. The seeds also contain amino acids, which are good for the blood pressure and hence the cardiovascular system.
• Flax seed may help stabilize blood-sugar levels, which can ease the symptoms of diabetes.
• Several studies have indicated that flax seed can help ease symptoms of menopause.
• Flax seed has been shown to be an effective but mild laxative due to its abundant dietary fiber. However, it must be taken with a good amount of water, or else there is a risk that it will actually block the digestive process.
• Flax seed also contains a healthy amount of antioxidants, which help purify cells and slow all types of aging and deterioration.
• Some elements of flax seed can have anti-inflammatory properties, which means the seeds can be useful for illnesses such as asthma and Parkinson’s disease.

Why Milled Flax Seed?

While flax seed in general obviously has many health benefits, milled flax seed is even better. There are a few reasons for this, but the simplest explanation is that milled flax seed is easier to digest than whole flax seed. The seeds are extremely difficult for the body to digest, and milling them breaks the hard outer shell while unleashing many of the vitamins and nutrients that are hidden within the complex internal structure of the seeds.

Milled flax seed can of course be bought at many natural food stores or ordered online, but it’s also quite easy to make milled seeds yourself. All you need is a coffee grinder. Put the seeds in the grinder and run it until they are ground as much as possible. The coffee grinder doesn’t need to be anything fancy. You can even use one of those cheap ones that only handles a few tablespoons at a time.

If you don’t want to mill your flax seed at home, you can also find it under different names. When you can’t find products labeled “milled” flax seed, look for ground flax seed or flax meal, which are exactly the same thing. And in fact, these products are becoming easier and easier to find in stores due to the rising popularity of flax seed as a health supplement.

One thing to keep in mind, however, is that milled flax seed has a shorter shelf life than whole flax seeds. That’s another reason why it’s a good idea to grind it yourself at home. This way, you can produce only as much as you need at any given time. Store the whole seeds in a cool, dark place, and they will last for up to a year.

How to use Milled Flax Seed

Here are a few things to keep in mind when adding milled flax seed to your diet:

• Golden flax seed is healthy, but it’s not nearly as healthy as brown flax seed, which contains many of the vitamins and nutrients in much greater abundance.
• If you buy products that claim to contain flax seed, make sure you read the labels closely. Some products that claim to offer flax seeds’ health benefits only contain negligible amounts. Others use whole flax seeds instead of the healthier and more easily digestible milled or ground flax seed.
• Mix flax seed into your diet wherever you can. Start with breakfast. Some ground flax seed is a great addition to foods such as oatmeal, yogurt, and cereal. It’s also great mixed into smoothies and milk, and even mixing a small amount into coffee is not a bad idea (it adds a slightly nutty flavor, which you may or may not like). It also goes great in soup, and it mixes well into many types of dark sauces. A little milled flax seed can even be a great addition to spaghetti or pizza sauce.
• Also try baking with flax seed. Mix it into the flour in recipes for foods like muffins, bread, pancakes, and waffles. Subtract the amount of flour that you are replacing with flax seed—though you might want to do a couple of test runs before you do this with foods you bake for other people. The results are highly dependent on the fineness of the grind and the quality of the seeds.
• When you feel like you need a little health or fiber kick, just mix some flax seed into water and drink it down quickly. It may not taste great, but it’s good for you. And of course, you can hide the taste of flax seed by mixing it into juices or other types of beverages.
• Try to have no more than two or three tablespoons daily. Too much can cause digestive problems, especially if not consumed with an adequate amount of water.