The Effects of Flaxseed Dietary Supplement on Lipid Profile, Bone Mineral Density, and Symptoms in Menopausal Women: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Wheat Germ Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial

Abstract

Phytoestrogens are increasingly incorporated into the diet of menopausal women. However, there are limited data on the efficacy of flaxseed on the consequences of estrogen deficiency in menopausal women. The purpose of the study was to assess the effects of flaxseed incorporation into the diet of healthy menopausal women. One hundred and ninety-nine menopausal women were randomly assigned to consume 40 g flaxseed/d (n = 101) or wheat germ placebo (n = 98) for 12 months. At baseline and at month 12, serum levels of lipids, bone mineral density (BMD), and menopausal symptoms were evaluated. Statistical analysis was performed under the intention to treat principle. Flaxseed reduced serum total (-0.20 +/- 0.51 mmol/liter; P = 0.012) and high-density lipoprotein (-0.08 +/- 0.24 mmol/liter; P = 0.031) cholesterol concentrations compared with wheat germ placebo. BMD did not differ significantly between the two arms. Both flaxseed and wheat germ reduced (P < 0.0001) the severity scores of menopausal symptoms, but no statistical difference was found between the two arms. Our findings suggest that 1-yr incorporation of flaxseed into the diet produced a favorable, but not clinically significant, effect on blood cholesterol and caused no significant change in BMD or symptoms in healthy menopausal women.

Potent Antihypertensive Action of Dietary Flaxseed in Hypertensive Patients

“…Furthermore, higher doses (up to 50 g/day) have been delivered without evidence of complications. 28 In addition, patients with BP values in the normal range did not appear to respond to flaxseed with a decrease in BP, which may be dangerous. This is consistent with previous reports of modest (if any) effects of dietary flaxseed on BP in healthy populations.…”

“…This is consistent with previous reports of modest (if any) effects of dietary flaxseed on BP in healthy populations. [28][29][30] This lack of effect on BP in previous studies may have been because of the use of normotensive populations to examine the effects of flaxseed, or because of the relatively short study period (ie, 3 weeks). 30 Four components within flaxseed may be responsible for the changes in BP: ALA, lignans, fiber, peptides, or a synergistic action of all 4 components together.…”

Dietary Supplements for Cholesterol Management

“…At the end of the trial, there was no reduction in total cholesterol or LDL-cholesterol in the flaxseed group compared to the baseline. However, when compared with the placebo group there was a modest but statistically significant reduction in total cholesterol of 7.7 mg/dL and an increase in HDL-cholesterol of 3.1 mg/dL [71].…”

Functional Foods and Bone Health: Where are we at?

“…Three randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials have investigated whether FS can modulate BMD or biochemical markers of bone metabolism in healthy postmenopausal women (Table 21.8) (Lucas et al 2002;Brooks et al 2004;Dodin et al 2005). The trial by Dodin et al (2005) consisted of long-term (12 months) daily treatment of 40 g FS in the form of a muffin (Dodin et al 2005).…”