# Flax Seeds



## HOBIE (Dec 24, 2015)

An article on web says . anti various cancer, anti Diabetes(reversal). Have nearly every day on my porridge.


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## Lynn Davies (Dec 24, 2015)

Love them for bread making in the machine - different taste but makes good bread.


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## Lynn Davies (Dec 24, 2015)

Just grinding some up to help bind the burgers I am making for lunch


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## AlisonM (Dec 24, 2015)

I've only ever used the oil as a medium for my pigments when painting. Maybe I should consider using them internally as well as externally?


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## Matt Cycle (Dec 24, 2015)

Always have ground linseed (flaxseed) on my porridge every day as well.  It's good stuff but it's not reversed my diabetes yet. 

(£1.99 for 250g in Aldi).


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## Robin (Dec 24, 2015)

Matt Cycle said:


> Always have ground linseed (flaxseed) on my porridge every day as well.  It's good stuff but it's not reversed my diabetes yet.
> 
> (£1.99 for 250g in Aldi).


Yes, I'm still waiting....


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## DeusXM (Dec 24, 2015)

I've heard contradictory reports that they either increase or decrease oestrogen levels - and the former is quite a bad thing, for men.


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## HOBIE (Dec 24, 2015)

Lynn Davies said:


> Just grinding some up to help bind the burgers I am making for lunch


What a good idea. Will give that a try !


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## Annette (Dec 25, 2015)

DeusXM said:


> I've heard contradictory reports that they either increase or decrease oestrogen levels - and the former is quite a bad thing, for men.


Ok, I'm missing something here. I thought you had to have, erm, ovaries to have oestrogen levels? So what else in the body produces oestrogen that could affect men? It's been a long time since I did biology at school...


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## DeusXM (Dec 26, 2015)

Oestrogen is also produced in body fat and the brain in both genders. One of theorised reasons why obese men suffer many health problems, aside from the basic issues caused by too much fat, is that they produce more oestrogen (because they've more fat), which then accelerates weight gain even further and disrupts their hormonal balance. 

'Moobs' are one of the signs of elevated oestrogen in men.

My understanding is that flax seeds contain high levels of plant oestrogens, but I've not been able to find a source to conclusively say whether this is good or bad. Some sources say your body uses plant oestrogens as it would regular oestrogen (thus increasing oestrogen effects overall), while others say your body can't use plant oestrogens but that they bind to the oestrogen receptors, blocking them off and reducing the overal oestrogen impact.


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## HOBIE (Dec 26, 2015)

They feel like they are good for you !  That's a good thing in my book . If you read everything that you put in your gob, you would not eat anything


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## Lynn Davies (Dec 26, 2015)

There is a shed load of information on this site.

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=81


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## HOBIE (Dec 26, 2015)

Lynn Davies said:


> There is a shed load of information on this site.
> 
> http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=81


Thanks Lynn !  Look good to me.  Nothings perfect but good for heart, anti cancer.


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## Lynn Davies (Dec 26, 2015)

Good for the plumbing as well!


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## Matt Cycle (Dec 26, 2015)

I've been eating it for quite a while and not noticed any er, bodily changes.


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## Lynn Davies (Dec 26, 2015)

Do you grind the seeds or eat them whole? Ground ones are better for you and provide plenty of roughage.


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## Matt Cycle (Dec 26, 2015)

I buy the already ground ones (£1.99 from Aldi).  I read somewhere they can turn rancid fairly quickly once ground so I presume that's why the ground ones are usually in vacuum sealed foil packs.  Yes, good for fibre and omega 3 although I already have plenty of fibre in my diet.  It's the possible effects of the oestrogen mentioned by Deus I'm more bothered about.


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## Lynn Davies (Dec 26, 2015)

Moobs can be attractive you know!

Yes the ready milled stuff does go rancid. It's the high fat content and once released from the seed it does have a limited shelf life.

I mill mine in a coffee grinder.

Makes great pancakes when added to beaten eggs.


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## Annette (Dec 26, 2015)

I mill coffee in my coffee grinder...


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## Lynn Davies (Dec 26, 2015)

Snap Annette


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## Annette (Dec 26, 2015)

How do you make the pancakes -just flaxseeds and eggs? Do you have to let it stand before you cook it? Sounds like something I must try...


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## Lynn Davies (Dec 26, 2015)

Yes you do need to let it stand for 10 minutes or so to thicken it up.

I grind a quarter cup and add to 4 beaten eggs. Once it has thickened add a teaspoon of baking powder and a pinch of salt and enough full fat milk (lower in carbs than skimmed) to make a batter consistency (about half a cup).

This will make 4 large pancakes. Enough for 2 people's breakfast.

We like to top ours with Joseph's sugar free maple syrup- I know it has lots of malitol in it but you don't need much so the plumbing problems don't happen. Tastes really lovely and no impact on BG levels.


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## DeusXM (Dec 27, 2015)

Lynn Davies said:


> There is a shed load of information on this site.
> 
> http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=81



What worries me though is this site cherry picks its references, is clearly a commercial site for selling things related to all this...and also includes this worrying bit:

"The second unique feature of flaxseed is its lignans. Lignans are fiber-like compounds, but in addition to their fiber-like benefits, they also provide antioxidant protection due to their structure as polyphenols. The unique structure of lignans gives them a further health-supportive role to play, however, in the form of phytoestrogens. Along with isoflavones, lignans are one of the few naturally occurring compounds in food that function as weak or moderate estrogens when consumed by humans. Among all foods commonly eaten by humans, researchers rank flaxseeds as the number one source of lignans."

This article doesn't seem to be aware that an oestrogen imbalance in men is not healthy at all and would likely outweigh any of the supposed, unsourced benefits.


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## HOBIE (Dec 27, 2015)

Deus would you rather eat "sticky toffee pudding cr-p" ? Not me !  A tiny sprinkle on porridge once a day. No sugar or sweetener. Possitive stuff.


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## DeusXM (Dec 29, 2015)

Well, personally for me, porridge is actually a worse dietary choice than 'sticky toffee pudding cr-p' (although I wouldn't eat that either) so thankfully there are more options than either pudding, or seeds that may or may not cause me to gain weight and grow breasts...


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## HOBIE (Dec 30, 2015)

In your expert opinion what do you think "Sticky toffee pudding does to you".  Porridge works brilliant for me.  Hours later very good bg.


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## DeusXM (Dec 31, 2015)

Well, for me personally (you are aware that responses to foods are highly individual, right?) a sticky toffee pudding would initially spike my blood sugar quite quickly but then have a limited impact after about 2 hours, neatly fitting the action profile of my Novorapid, meaning if I time my injection right and match my carbs correctly, I could probably just about keep my BG under control.

Porridge, however, takes nearer an hour to start raising my blood sugar and then it just keeps going and going at a rate that does not easily match my insulin action profile. I would likely need to take a correction bolus around the three hour mark which unfortunately then also leaves me dangerously exposed to potential lower blood sugar in three hours' time. 

As a result, I wouldn't really eat either of those things for breakfast, particularly as I also suffer from significant dawn phenomenon and insulin resistance (my BG, after being level all night, will increase by 2mmol/l every hour in the morning regardless of what I do, so I also have to factor that in to my calculations).

I'm happy for you that you can eat porridge and maintain an BG of between 4 and 7 throughout. I, unfortunately, can't. Just because something works for you doesn't mean it works for everyone else.


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## Redkite (Dec 31, 2015)

Lynn Davies said:


> Moobs can be attractive you know!
> .



Er what?!!!  Don't risk it guys! 

As with all these "latest fad" foods, a little as part of a widely varied diet won't be harmful, but why do people always advocate including these things with every meal?


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## HOBIE (Dec 31, 2015)

DeusXM said:


> Well, for me personally (you are aware that responses to foods are highly individual, right?) a sticky toffee pudding would initially spike my blood sugar quite quickly but then have a limited impact after about 2 hours, neatly fitting the action profile of my Novorapid, meaning if I time my injection right and match my carbs correctly, I could probably just about keep my BG under control.
> 
> Porridge, however, takes nearer an hour to start raising my blood sugar and then it just keeps going and going at a rate that does not easily match my insulin action profile. I would likely need to take a correction bolus around the three hour mark which unfortunately then also leaves me dangerously exposed to potential lower blood sugar in three hours' time.
> 
> ...


As with 99.9% of diabetics "stick toffee pudding cake" is great for treating Hypos etc.  I have a manual job at times & Porridge is brilliant for my lifestyle. Slow release not quick & I am on Novorapid on my pump .  I never sit still & have been at work this morning & through the holls


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## DeusXM (Dec 31, 2015)

HOBIE said:


> Porridge is brilliant for my lifestyle.



Good for you. It's terrible for mine and the way my body personally metabolises carbohydrates, and that's what I have to base my diabetes management around - on MY body, not the body of someone else who's also using a different treatment regime. I'm not sure why you seem to feel so threatened by the prospect that the perfect diet for you is not the perfect diet for someone else. Particularly as I wasn't even questioning you eating porridge in the morning, I'm just a bit concerned about the impact of flax seeds on my hormone levels.

I'd much rather stick with either my Greek yoghurt with berries, or omelettes, as these don't cause me to spike and are easy for me to manage. As I said before, we actually do have a wider choice than either porridge or pudding. For me, BOTH choices are bad but I personally would find the pudding easier to manage.

Sticky toffee pudding would be an appalling hypo treatment in that it will have far more than the 15g recommended.


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## HOBIE (Dec 31, 2015)

Sticky Toffee pudding would make anyone spike ? On a pump you can sort food, activity, to the bolus you want. You should try one


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## DeusXM (Jan 2, 2016)

I'm not saying sticky toffee pudding doesn't make your blood sugar spike, I'm saying that for me, the spike is much more manageable than the prolonged effect porridge has on me. Novorapid's peak is around the 1 hour mark, which is when sticky toffee pudding's peak effect hits me. Porridge, however, starts work after about an hour and then just keeps going - well beyond the capabilities of the insulin I'm using on MDI.

I'm sure a pump would offer me better control when eating porridge but the fact remains that, in common with the majority of people with diabetes, I simply cannot afford one, particularly when I'm getting A1cs in the low 6s anyway. I would far rather just make smarter dietary choices that work for me, which for me involves avoiding both porridge and sticky toffee pudding. Neither of those foods are worth paying thousands of pounds to eat.


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## robert@fm (Jan 2, 2016)

Redkite said:


> As with all these "latest fad" foods, a little as part of a widely varied diet won't be harmful, but why do people always advocate including these things with every meal?


It's similar to the way that some people, if they find what they believe to be a health problem, suddenly it's the cause of all illness known to humankind.  There was a nutcase on the Usenet diabetes forums who reckoned that the source of all illness, without exception, is the presence of iron in the diet; he had clearly never heard of anaemia, for a start.


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## HOBIE (Jan 2, 2016)

I eat seafood for England ! No carbs & good for your brain (apparently) From the age of 3 I have kept away from sweet things & would much prefer A lobster to a cake any day.  Porridge suits me & give energy slowly without peaking. Better for diabetics


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## DeusXM (Jan 3, 2016)

No, it's better for YOU, not 'diabetics' (and also, better than what exactly? Lobster? Salad? Haribo?)

If I ate porridge for breakfast my A1c would be far higher than it is now. I'm glad it works for you. It doesn't work for me. As with all things diabetes related, Your Mileage May Vary.


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## Matt Cycle (Jan 3, 2016)

robert@fm said:


> It's similar to the way that some people, if they find what they believe to be a health problem, suddenly it's the cause of all illness known to humankind.  There was a nutcase on the Usenet diabetes forums who reckoned that the source of all illness, without exception, is the presence of iron in the diet; he had clearly never heard of anaemia, for a start.



I blame the internet.  Well, okay then, the people who use it. Whilst it is a fantastic resource unfortunately a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing particularly regarding medical issues.  Doctors have years of medical training and then practise what they have learnt.  Someone who has done a 'bit of googling on the internet' is not medically qualified in spite of how well they can appear to put their points across.  That's why doctors are working in hospitals and surgeries and the 'googler' is sat in front of a computer screen.


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## Seke (Jan 10, 2016)

DeusXM said:


> No, it's better for YOU, not 'diabetics' (and also, better than what exactly? Lobster? Salad? Haribo?)
> 
> If I ate porridge for breakfast my A1c would be far higher than it is now. I'm glad it works for you. It doesn't work for me. As with all things diabetes related, Your Mileage May Vary.


good point...

enjoy
ken


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## JamesAM (Jan 17, 2016)

DeusXM said:


> Well, personally for me, porridge is actually a worse dietary choice than 'sticky toffee pudding cr-p' (although I wouldn't eat that either) so thankfully there are more options than either pudding, or seeds that may or may not cause me to gain weight and grow breasts...



Have to say I agree with  you on porridge as I have exactly the same effect - have caught it at 14 before now 2 hours after breakfast. Was recommended porridge by my initial diabetic team, which I duly gave up quite quickly (I also had a fairly physical job at the time, but preferred to have smaller portions of other foods to stay level)

On the gaining weight and moobs though....have been eating flaxseeds with my breakfast for a good 4 months now. My weight has been extremely stable, as has my body fat. I have 15g per day as a way to increase dietary fibre and help my cholesterol levels, which I am assured are good, but which I know are above 'normal'. I have not had a cholesterol test since eating flaxseed, but I will be interested to see what, if any, effect they have had.


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## shirley (Jan 18, 2016)

Lynn Davies said:


> Moobs can be attractive you know!
> 
> Yes the ready milled stuff does go rancid. It's the high fat content and once released from the seed it does have a limited shelf life.
> 
> ...


Hi, like the idea of using in pancakes, what sort of proportions please?


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## Lynn Davies (Jan 18, 2016)

shirley said:


> Hi, like the idea of using in pancakes, what sort of proportions please?


Shirley - this is the reply from earlier:

I grind a quarter cup of Flax Seed and add to 4 beaten eggs. Once it has thickened add a teaspoon of baking powder and a pinch of salt and enough full fat milk (lower in carbs than skimmed) to make a batter consistency (about half a cup).

This will make 4 large pancakes. Enough for 2 people's breakfast.

We like to top ours with Joseph's sugar free maple syrup- I know it has lots of malitol in it but you don't need much so the plumbing problems don't happen. Tastes really lovely and no impact on BG levels.​If you use the Joseph's sugar free maple syrup please be aware of the polyol trots that can occur from over consumption!


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