Nutritional attributes of traditional flaxseed in healthy young adults

The objective was to determine the influence of consuming 50 g flaxseed/d for 4 wk on several indexes of nutrition in young healthy adults. During flaxseed consumption, alpha-linolenate was increased significantly in adipose tissue, and n-3 polyunsaturates were increased in plasma lipids. Plasma LDL cholesterol was also reduced by up to 8%, and total urinary lignan excretion was increased more than fivefold (P < 0.05). Muffins containing 25 g flaxseed did not differ significantly from control muffins in their content of thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances, and alpha-linolenate in the muffins was not significantly reduced by baking. Antioxidant vitamins and lipid hydroperoxides in plasma were not significantly affected by flaxseed consumption. Bowel movements per week increased by 30% while flaxseed was consumed (P < 0.05). We conclude that traditional flaxseed has modest beneficial effects on several indexes of nutritional status without compromising antioxidant status.