Flaxseed: The heart-healthy superfood you need

Discovering heart-healthy superfoods

In this article Jane McClenaghan, a leading nutritionist in Northern Ireland with over two decades of expertise shares her knowledge on the heart-healthy superfood, Flaxseed. Jane explains how heart-healthy superfood can be incorporate into your diet, focusing on the benefits of Flaxseed and other nutrient rich foods to support your heart health.

How healthy is your heart?

Unless you have a family history of heart disease, or your GP has flagged markers like high cholesterol or elevated blood pressure, you may not be giving your heart much love.

It’s the little things that matter. Managing stress levels, keeping an eye on alcohol consumption, a regular exercise routine and a Mediterranean diet can all go a long way in supporting cardiovascular health.

Heart disease is a big deal in the UK, with over 7.6 million people living with cardiovascular disease (1).

Markers of cardiovascular function include:

Cholesterol
HDL
LDL
Tricglycerides
Blood pressure

The great news is that our daily diet and lifestyle choices can have a really positive impact on all of these markers and help to reduce our risk of cardiovascular disease.

Benefits within flaxseed for heart health

Flaxseed is one of the key foods that is often recommended as part of a heart-healthy diet.

Several studies have shown the beneficial cardiovascular effects of dietary supplementation with flaxseed (2).

Although there may be other components in flaxseed that have benefits for heart health, the most well researched areas have focused on omega 3, lignans and fibre.

Omega 3 fats

A diet high in omega 3 fats is one of the key dietary recommendations for promoting heart health.

Flaxseed is one of the richest sources of the plant-based omega 3 fatty acids called alpha-linolenic acid (ALA).

Several research studies indicate that ALA may have a positive impact on cardiovascular health, making flaxseed a useful addition to a heart-healthy diet.

It is thought that ALA may help reduce the risk of heart disease in a number of ways, including:

Reduction of atherosclerosis plaque build up
Anti-inflammatory effects
Positive effect on the balance of total cholesterol and LDL (Human studies have shown that flaxseed can modestly reduce serum total and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol concentrations)
Reduction of triglycerides
Inhibits arrhythmia

(3) (4)

Lignans

Flaxseed is one of the richest dietary sources of lignans. These nutritional compounds are found in the husk of flaxseed and could have a positive effect on cardiovascular health.

People who eat diets high in plant lignans tend to have better results for cardiovascular risk factors including insulin sensitivity and lipid balance (cholesterol and triglycerides) (5).

Fibre

Flaxseed is a really good source of soluble fibre.

Although the daily recommended intake for fibre is 30g a day, most of us have a way to go to hit that mark. The average intake in the UK is just 20g a day.

Soluble fibre is super important for heart health.

It has several benefits including:

Improving blood lipid profiles
Lowering blood pressure
Improving insulin sensitivity

Adding flaxseed to your daily diet is an easy way to bump up your soluble fibre intake with the potential to reduce risk factors for cardiovascular disease (6).

Other recommendations around food/lifestyle to support your health

9 simple tips for a healthy heart

1. Get your fix of Flaxseed

Get into the habit of adding flaxseed to your diet every day. Linwoods recommend a 20g portion

2. Increase your intake of oily fish

To keep your omega 3 fats topped up. Salmon, mackerel, herring, sardines and anchovies will do the trick

3. Use olive oil

It is a key component of the Mediterranean diet and is often used alongside flaxseed for heart-healthy diet recommendations

4. Eat as many colourful vegetables as you can pack onto your plate.

Aim to pack half your plate with vegetables and get as many different types into your diet as you can. Although the official goal is at least 5 a day, the more the better – so if you can aim for 7 a day that is even better! Aim to eat a rainbow of colours and take a look at the frozen aisle for berries and different types of vegetables to help you get as much variety as possible

5. High fibre foods

High fibre food like beans, lentils, oats, whole grains, seeds and nuts are thought to help balance cholesterol. Use beans and lentils to bulk out soups and stews, sprinkle flaxseed onto porridge and choose whole grains over white stuff every time.

6. Keep sugar to a minimum

We know that sugar is a big player when it comes to heart disease, spiking blood sugar levels, damaging the blood vessels, overloading the liver and increasing the risk of heart disease. Not good news! So the more we can do to cut back, the better. Cut fizzy drinks, Keep an eye on added sugars from sweets, desserts, juice and soft drinks and discover healthier alternatives for your sweet tooth.

7. Keep an eye on salt

Use sea salt in moderation and cut back on salty snacks. Remember that foods like bacon, ham and sausages are a big contributor of salt in our diet – less is best!

8. Move your body

Move it or lose it. Keeping active is a non-negotiable. Walk, dance, cycle – whatever you do, make sure you move your bod every day. Good for you heart as well as stress management.

9. Address the stress

Stress increases our risk of heart disease, so work out how best you can manage your daily stress. Mindfulness, being in nature and daily exercise can help.