Flax Reduces Blood Cholesterol

Dr. Harriott's Comment:
In reviewing this article referenced below the interesting take away points are: 1) Flax oil did not render the benefit that whole flax seed did. 2) It appears that the benefit is only towards lowering cholesterol and LDL, not towards increasing HDL, and 3) the effects on women appear to be on the order of 3 times higher than the the effects on men. Interesting stuff...

=====================================

Flaxseed Reduces Blood Lipids
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/706641?sssdmh=dm1.506978&src=nldne

July 29, 2009 — Whole flaxseed and flaxseed lignans significantly reduce circulating total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels, showing their greatest effect in postmenopausal women and individuals with high initial cholesterol concentrations, according to the results of a meta-analysis published in the August 2009 issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

...

There were no significant changes in HDL cholesterol or triglyceride levels.

Interpret Findings With Caution

The authors point out that the limitations of their study include the heterogeneity of the studies in the meta-analysis, and a lack of information on the quality, quantity, and bioavailability of the flaxseed that was used. Therefore, they write, their findings must be interpreted with caution.

The results of this meta-analysis indicate that flaxseed consumption may be a useful dietary approach for the prevention of hypercholesterolemia, especially in some patient subgroups, the authors conclude. They add that further studies should be done to investigate the effectiveness of flaxseed supplementation on cardiometabolic risk factors other than blood lipids and, ultimately, on cardiovascular disease–related morbidity and mortality.