1.       Introduction 

One of the most economical and yet effective natural foods available to protect against all types of cancer and other common health issues is the humble little flaxseed.  It not only offers a high source of quality protein but also was just 1 ounce of flaxseeds you would get 6000 mg of pure omega-3 fatty acids.  No wonder, Dr. Johanna Budwig was so keen on using flaxseeds and flaxseed oil in treating some 2500 people with all types of cancer. 

2.       Why Everyone Should Include in Their Daily Food Choices: 

2.1.  Flaxseeds Help Protect Against Cancer and Tumors:  the reason why flaxseeds are so helpful in the fight against cancer is that they contain something called lignans. In addition, they have several natural cancer preventive phytonutrients, vitamins and minerals. Clinical studies indicated that “The women who eat the most flax lowered their risk of getting breast cancer by 62% compared to women who do not eat it.” [1]. When flaxseeds are combined with quark (Cottage Cheese) it offers even more protection against cancer and tumor reduction. In the November 2004 issue of Clinical Cancer Research, a study was done combining flaxseed with tamoxifen alone. The study reported: “They used mice with human breast cancer tumors with and without supplemental estrogen. At low estrogen levels, predictive of a woman in menopause, tumors in the flaxseed fed mice shrunk 74%.  

2.2.  Flaxseeds Help Protect Against Heart Disease:  Heart Disease is still the number one killer in here again the humble little flaxseed takes top prize in preventing heart disease. In 2014 Health Canada approved a health claim linking ground whole flaxseeds to lowering blood cholesterol, which is a major factor in heart disease.  You can eat flaxseeds in a variety of ways however for maximum heart health benefits, it is recommended that we consume 5 tablespoons (40 g) of ground whole flaxseed over three eating occasions in the day [2]. 

2.3.  Flaxseeds Help Prevent Diabetes: More and more were hearing even younger ones been stricken with diabetes, due to improper diet. Adding flaxseeds to your food choices helps lower the risk of both type 1 and 2 diabetes [3].  

2.4.  Flaxseeds Protect Against Radiation Damage: Amongst the modern medical treatments for cancer are radiation sessions that cause a lot of harm to the body. Often people with cancer are subject to radiation sessions.  A 2009 study found that dietary flaxseed prevents radiation-induced oxidative lung damage, inflammation and fibrosis in a mouse model of thoracic radiation injury [4]. 

2.5.  Flaxseed Helps Reduce an Enlarged Prostate and Lower PSA: Most men after they reach the age of 50 have problems with an enlarged prostate.  For just pennies a day you can add flaxseed to your diet and reap the benefits. In fact, a 2007 study found that daily consumption of flaxseeds improves lower urinary tract symptoms in men with benign prostatic hyperplasia. Another 2004 study found that men who consumed generous amounts of flaxseeds reduced the proliferation of prostate cells and PSA. There are also several studies indicating flaxseed has direct anti-prostate cancer properties [5,6].

3.       Flaxseeds or Flaxseed Oil Is One Better Than the Other?  

Often people will ask us should I use the flaxseed oil or just the flaxseeds? Well the correct answer is that both should be used. However, it’s very important to protect the flaxseed oil and use it properly. Here are some good guidelines that we can provide you from the Budwig Center.  

a.        Always please keep the flaxseed oil in the fridge, as flaxseed oil is fragile and can oxidize quickly if not refrigerated.  Flaxseeds can be kept at room temperature and they will last indefinitely.

b.       It’s very important as well that you only purchase fresh cold pressed linseed oil:  look for suppliers that will produce the flaxseed oil and ship it directly to you so that you can immediately refrigerate it.  In fact, you can buy in case lots at lower prices and flaxseed oil will keep up to a year in your deep-freeze 

c.        Do not make the mistake of buying pre-ground flaxseeds that are sold in some stores. Always grind the linseeds in a coffee grinder fresh and consume within 20 minutes.  

d.       Unless you’re a bird, do not eat the flaxseed as is, otherwise it’ll simply go right through you. They must always be ground in a coffee ground and then added to smoothies, sprinkled over salads and used in the famous Dr. Johanna Budwig mixture. 

e.        And another no-no is to heat up flaxseed oil when cooking.  This should never be done as the flaxseed oil will break down and oxidize when heated.  Use cold pressed coconut oil or grape seed oils for cooking. 

4.       How to Consume Flaxseeds and Flaxseed oil? 

There is no limit of how you can use flaxseeds and flaxseed oil in your kitchen. At the Budwig Center we teach our cancer patients to grind up a tablespoon of flaxseeds and sprinkle them over a salad and then mix 50/50 flaxseed oil with olive oil for the salad.

Be creative, add them to smoothies, sprinkle over pasta dishes and add to your cereal. Use them in the famous Dr. Budwig’s flaxseed oil and cottage cheese (Muesli) mixture. How much flaxseeds can you consume on a daily basis? We know of patients that have consumed up to 5 tablespoons a day with no adverse reaction. Of course, if you have a reaction lower the dosage and find what amount works best for you. The modern diet today does not offer enough omega 3. As already mentioned flaxseeds are full of good omega-3 fatty acids, containing a 4:1 ratio of omega 3 to omega 6 fatty acids. 

To find out more on how to protect your health and that of your loved ones, please download a free copy of “The Dr. Budwig Answer to Cancer” with our Free Budwig Report at: www.BudwigCenter.com  

Figure 1:  Flaxseed oil with olive oil for the salad.

Figure 1:  Flaxseed oil with olive oil for the salad.

1.       Schor J (2006) The buzz on flax seeds and breast cancer. Int J Cancer 119: 2279-2286.

2.       Flax and Your Health. Ask a Flax Expert.

3.       Lee JC, Krochak R, Blouin A, Kanterakis S, Chatterjee S, et al. (2009) Dietary flaxseed prevents radiation-induced oxidative lung damage, inflammation and fibrosis in a mouse model of thoracic radiation injury. Cancer Biol Ther 8: 47-53.

4.       Zhang W, Wang X, Liu Y, Tian H, Flickinger B, et al. (2008) Effects of dietary flaxseed lignan extract on symptoms of benign prostatic hyperplasia. J Ren Nutr 11: 207-214.

5.       Wendy Demark-Wahnefried, Cary N Robertson, Philip J Walther, Thomas J Polascik, David F Paulson, Robin T Vollmer. Pilot study to explore effects of low-fat, flaxseed-supplemented diet on proliferation of benign prostatic epithelium and prostate-specific antigen. Urology 63: 900-904.

6.       GreenMedInfo.com, Flaxseed and Prostate Cancer.