Flaxseed: its bioactive components and their cardiovascular benefits

Abstract

Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide. The inclusion of functional foods and natural health products in the diet are gaining increasing recognition as integral components of lifestyle changes in the fight against cardiovascular disease. Several preclinical and clinical studies have shown the beneficial cardiovascular effects of dietary supplementation with flaxseed. The cardiovascular effects of dietary flaxseed have included an antihypertensive action, antiatherogenic effects, a lowering of cholesterol, an anti-inflammatory action, and an inhibition of arrhythmias. Its enrichment in the ω-3 fatty acid α-linolenic acid and the antioxidant lignan secoisolariciresinol diglucoside as well as its high fiber content have been implicated primarily in these beneficial cardiovascular actions. Although not as well recognized, flaxseed is also composed of other potential bioactive compounds such as proteins, cyclolinopeptides, and cyanogenic glycosides, which may also produce biological actions. These compounds could also be responsible for the cardiovascular effects of flaxseed. This article will not only summarize the cardiovascular effects of dietary supplementation with flaxseed but also review its bioactive compounds in terms of their properties, biological effects, and proposed mechanisms of action. It will also discuss promising research directions for the future to identify additional health-related benefits of dietary flaxseed.

Effects of germination on tocopherol, secoisolarlciresinol diglucoside, cyanogenic glycosides and antioxidant activities in flaxseed (Linum usitatissimum L.)

“…Flaxseed (Linum usitatissimum L.) is one of the top ten oil crops in the world and is widely cultivated in Canada, Argentina, USA and China (Parikh et al, 2017). The flaxseed oil is often eaten as edible oil, and flaxseed meal obtained from oil extraction can be used as animal feed due to its large amount of protein (Singh et al, 2011).…”

“…Lignans are the most important bioactive substances of flaxseed; the mainest is secoisolariciresinol diglucoside (SDG). Its biological activity have been reported to anticancer, osteporosis preventing and cardiovascular disease preventing (Parikh et al, 2017). Vitamin E is the main micronutrients contained in flaxseed that has the physiological functions of anti-ageing, antioxidation and prevention of cardiovascular (Bolger et al, 2017).…”

Direct inhibitory effect of flaxseed on porcine ovarian granulosa cell functions

“…The mechanisms of flaxseed action on ovarian cells remain to be elucidated. The documented antioxidant and phytoestrogenic properties of flaxseed molecules (Dew and Williamson, 2013;Goyal et al, 2014;Kajla et al, 2015;Ghazanfarpour et al, 2016;Parikh et al, 2018) should presumably promote cell proliferation and prevent DNA fragmentation resulting in apoptosis, but in our experiments, flaxseeds exerted the opposite effects. However, its effects might be mediated by steroid hormones or prostaglandins.…”

“…Flaxseed is cultivated in many parts of the world for fiber, oil, as a nutritional product, as well as for medicinal purposes. It is a rich source of biologically active health-promoting components such as the ω-3 fatty acid, α-linolenic acid, the phytoestrogen and antioxidant lignan secoisolariciresinol diglucoside, fiber, amino acids, proteins, and microelements (Goyal et al, 2014;Kajla et al, 2015;Parikh et al, 2018). These components are beneficial against cardiovascular diseases (they have anti-hypertensive, anti-atherogenic, anti-arrhythmic, cholesterol, and atherosclerosis lowering effects), diabetes, cancer, arthritis, osteoporosis, and autoimmune and neurological disorders.…”

“…These components are beneficial against cardiovascular diseases (they have anti-hypertensive, anti-atherogenic, anti-arrhythmic, cholesterol, and atherosclerosis lowering effects), diabetes, cancer, arthritis, osteoporosis, and autoimmune and neurological disorders. Flaxseed proteins help in the prevention and treatment of heart diseases and support the immune system (Goyal et al, 2014;Parikh et al, 2018). Flaxseed, owing to its phytoestrogenic effect, can prevent or weaken some symptoms of menopause (hot flashes, vaginal atrophy, lowering bone mineral density, and bone turnover) without promotion of estrogen-associated cancers (Dew and Williamson, 2013;Ghazanfarpour et al, 2016).…”