flax-seed-benefits

6 Major Reasons To Add Flaxseed To Your Diet

We all know that we need to consume the right amount of protein in order to get the maximum out of our workouts and make our muscles grow at an optimal rate. However, one mistake made by many athletes is that they often ignore fiber intake, which is proven to be another essential staple in your bodybuilding nutrition.

There is a product that satisfies your body’s needs for both fiber and protein. And it is all natural. That product is flaxseed. It can be bought in the form of supplements tables, but you can also find it in oil and ground forms. In this article, we will list 6 additional reasons why you should add flaxseed into your nutrition regimen:

It reduces hypertension

Statistics issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately every third American, which would be around 68 million people, has high blood pressure, which is defined as hypertension. A normal range would be 120 over 180. If your blood pressure happens to constantly exceed these numbers, you should immediately consult with your physician.

Flaxseed has been shown to have a tremendous ability to help with this condition. A 12-week study was done on 60 middle-aged men, which were regularly given flaxseed oil. The study concluded that its consumption significantly lowered the men’s blood pressure parameters. If you do suffer from hypertension, make sure you add flaxseed oil to your diet and you will be well on your way to recovery.

It reduces the possibility of skin cancer

Sun exposure has been, time and time again, proven to be extremely damaging to the skin. If you still want to get that tanned look you’re after, you have to be smart about it and protect yourself. On top of the mandatory sunscreen you should also consume flaxseed. A study done on mice that were given flaxseed supplements revealed that melanoma tumors could be reduced by as much as 60%.

It helps with depression

Depression is rampant in our modern society. Antidepressants are the most commonly prescribed drugs by doctors, but one Japanese study revealed that simply by consuming flaxseed you can combat the depression. The study found that highly depressed patients had low levels of eicosapentanoic and docosahexaenoic acids. These same acids are found in products like walnuts, fish and – you guessed it – flax. So, start eating these foods to elevate both acids’ levels in your body and ease depression.

Liver Illness

You may have decided to start a fit and healthy lifestyle, but you are still considering alcohol as a drink. We’re here to ease your decision and tell you it is better to stop consuming alcohol altogether. The organ enduring the most damage in regards to alcohol consumption is the liver. It is the one in charge of metabolizing this toxin in your body and the process of doing it is taxing and can greatly damage it. If getting rid of alcohol is too much for you, there is a way you can decrease the risk it presents to the liver. A study was done where 20 men were given 100 mg flaxseed lignin tablets. The results have shown decreased liver disease risk levels.

High cholesterol

Is high cholesterol something that’s been bothering you? If you don’t treat it, your blood vessels will become clogged, which greatly increases your risk of getting a stroke or a heart attack. Here too, flaxseed has been shown to help. Iowa State University scientists found a curious thing where flaxseed has been shown to lower cholesterol of men only. That doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t continue to take your specifically prescribed drugs made to counter this condition, but if you want to supplement them with an inexpensive alternative, taking some flaxseed lignan capsules or sprinkling some ground flaxseed on your meals is a good idea.

Prostate cancer

Another field in which flaxseed has been proven to help in fighting prostate cancer. In 2012 only, in the US, more than 240,000 new cases were reported and more than 28,000 deaths related to prostate cancer. These numbers are a huge incentive for researchers to try to find new ways to combat this disease. A study done on 160 pre-surgery patients revealed that flaxseed has enormously reduced the rate of cancer cells creation. How does flaxseed do this? Most likely because flaxseed can interrupt the processes by which cancer cells are produced.


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