What is Flaxseed and How to Add it in Your Diet

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Flax seeds are a superfood that is very easy to add to your diet. Let’s talk about what is flaxseed, where it comes from, and the benefits of flaxseed. We are also going to talk about where to buy flaxseed and how to store it and how you can easily incorporate flaxseed into your diet.


I love adding seeds to our diet. I always add them when I make bread or fruit smoothies. One of my favorites to add is flaxseed. It has a nutty flavor, so healthy, and it’s filling. I have four little kids and they eat a lot!

They love fruit but fruit digests very quickly in their little tummies. Many times, I make them a fruit smoothie instead of just handing them the fruit and to that fruit smoothie I add a few tablespoons of flax seed.

It makes the smoothie thick and heavy and I honestly can’t drink more than a cup. It’s so filling that it holds the little termites for a while. It can be a great breakfast substitute or a great snack during the day.

What is Flaxseed And How to Add it to Your Diet…

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I knew that flax was healthy because all seeds are. But as I used it more I became more curious as to what’s really in there and decided to perform this little research that I am sharing with you here. I’ll try to link to as many relevant and credible articles in case you want to read further.

Flaxseed benefits, what is flaxseed, how to use flaxseed, and flaxseed recipes. This is a superfood that is very easy to add to your diet.

The flax plant is a part of the Linaceae family and is a fiber. The plant is a low-growing shrub, with beautiful purple or yellow flowers. The flax plant is cultivated for its fiber, which is used to make linen fabric (yes, you might be sleeping on flax every night), and for its seed that is sometimes referred to as linseed.

Flax seeds can come in two colors: golden and dark brown.

The golden flax seeds are harvested from the yellow flowering plant, and the dark brown seeds are harvested from the purple flowering plant. The nutritional value of both kinds is very similar.

Flax seeds can be used milled or whole and in addition, there is also flaxseed oil which is the oil that is extracted from the seed.

What are the Benefits of Flax Seed?

Flaxseed benefits, what is flaxseed, how to use flaxseed, and flaxseed recipes. This is a superfood that is very easy to add to your diet.

Flaxseed is very high in nutritional value – it’s a great source of fiber, healthy fat, minerals, and vitamins. Again, both golden and dark brown flaxseed are similar in their nutritional values.

100 grams of flaxseed contains…

  • Carbohydrates – 29g
  • Protein – 20g
  • Total Fat – 41g
  • Linolenic Acid – 23g
  • Dietary Fiber – 28 g
  • Lignans – 10 – 2600 mg
  • Folic Acid – 112 mg
  • Sodium – 27 mg
  • Copper – 1 mg
  • Zinc – 4 mg
  • Calcium – 236 mg

You can find the full table HERE. And you can find additional nutritional data HERE.

Flaxseed is rich in high-quality proteins – if you do not eat meat, flaxseed can be a great replacement for the protein you would get from meat. But even if you do eat meat, you can replace some of it with flax or add flax to make sure your tummy is full and you have plenty of energy to complete everyday tasks especially in times when you might be more tired like after a new baby is born or if you are working on a large project.

Protein is very important in supporting our immune system, to lower cholesterol, and balance energy levels. You can read more about the importance of protein HERE.

Flaxseed is the best natural laxative – as you can see above, there is 28 g of dietary fiber in 100 g of flaxseed. Dietary fiber is very important to our digestive system. It can correct digestive disturbances, protects and smooths the stomach and intestinal lining, and prevents irritation and keeps the contents in our stomach moving along smoothly.

Soluble fiber has been shown to help regulate blood sugar levels and lower cholesterol (find research about this HERE), and in addition, it helps to increase the amount of water in stool and therefore results in softer stool and prevents constipation (find research about this HERE).

Flaxseed is one of the best sources of omega 3 and omega 6 – these two fatty acids are very important for human health. Our body can convert omega 3 and 6 into essential substances needed in the membranes surrounding our cells and organelles within them.

Our body can also convert omega 3 and 6 into substances needed for balancing our metabolism. In addition, omega 3 and 6 fats provide the fluidity needed for proper transmission and reception of impulses between brain cells, helping to improve brain function and prevent stroke.

“Alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) is plant-based essential omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids that must be obtained through the diet. This could explain in part why the severe deficiency in omega-3 intake pointed by numerous epidemiologic studies may increase the brain’s vulnerability representing an important risk factor in the development and/or deterioration of certain cardio- and neuropathologies. The roles of ALA in neurological disorders remain unclear, especially in stroke that is a leading cause of death. We and others have identified ALA as a potential nutraceutical to protect the brain from stroke, characterized by its pleiotropic effects in neuroprotection, vasodilation of brain arteries, and neuroplasticity.”

**You can find this study HERE.

Anticancer effect – flaxseed is rich in phytoestrogen and a-linolenic acid rich oil and has been shown to reduce the risk of breast cancer.

“More clinical trials are needed but current overall evidence indicates that FS (flaxseed) and its components are effective in the risk reduction and treatment of breast cancer and safe for consumption by breast cancer patients.”

**You can find this research HERE and read further.

Flaxseed supports healthy skin – not only is flaxseed rich in fats and lignans, but it’s also rich in antioxidants which, among other things, help protect our skin from environmental threats.

Regular consumption of flaxseed literally beautifies the skin from within. The oil in the flax seed makes the skin smooth, velvety, and radiant, and young-looking (think anti-aging properties) saving you the need to use expensive external creams.

“Frequently researched antioxidants such as carotenoids, tocophenols and flavonoids, as well as vitamins (A, C, D and E), essential omega-3-fatty acids, some proteins and lactobacilli have been referred as agents capable of promoting skin health and beauty.”

You can read this research HERE.

Where to Buy Flaxseed and How to Store it?

Ground flax seeds.

You most likely will be able to find flaxseed and maybe even flaxseed oil in your local grocery store.

If you can’t, or if you prefer to purchase online, here are some links to Amazon…

Ground flaxseed

Dark brown whole flaxseed

Flax oil

Flaxseed oil capsules – if you want to take it as a supplement.

A note about flax oil… It goes rancid very very fast and is extremely unstable. It might be better to purchase it locally because then you can preferably purchase refrigerated oil.

Once you get your flax products it’s recommended to keep all of them in the refrigerator. I tried leaving ground flax at room temperature and it didn’t hold for long. I could taste the sour/acidic taste after a couple of weeks.

On the other hand, I have a jar of flaxseed that is in the fridge for months now and is still perfectly fine. Whole seeds might not go rancid as quickly as ground flax at room temperature but I think that it’s still better to keep them refrigerated.

How to Add Flaxseeds to Your Diet?

Flaxseed benefits, what is flaxseed, how to use flaxseed, and flaxseed recipes. This is a superfood that is very easy to add to your diet.

You can add whole flaxseeds to homemade bread or other baked goods. I love sprinkling it on top of my homemade Challa bread (read: 5 Ways to Braid Challah Bread). You can also make this simple flax jelly from Joybilee Farm to help with a sore throat.

Ground flax seeds can be added to just about anything. Add a couple of tablespoons to a fruit shake, pancakes, morning cereal, rice crispy treats, meatloaf, cookies and more.

You can also add ground flaxseed to infant purees. This is a great way to add good nutrition into the little one’s diet. They grow so fast that they can definitely use it!

If you are a homesteader like me and own farm animals, or even if you just own a dog… You can mix ground flaxseed with your dog, goat, horse, or cow’s food for a shinier and healthier coat and for healthy nutrition.

You can also use flax seed as a substitute for eggs, butter, and oil. Here is how…

1 egg = 1 tablespoon flax + 3 tablespoons water.

1 tablespoon margarine, butter or oil = 3 tablespoons flax.

You can add flax oil to fruit shakes and other cold food or you can just swallow a tablespoon of it as a supplement. You can’t cook with flax oil because it goes rancid at high (or even not so high) temperatures.

Ok, I hope you have a better understanding of flaxseed and what you can do with it after reading this post. I enjoyed doing this research and putting this together.


I’ve been using flaxseed for a long time now. I don’t use the oil but I always have ground flaxseed and whole flaxseed in the fridge and I just try to put them in everything.

If you have a way to use them that I didn’t mention above please share in the comments below. Also, if you are taking flaxseed oil as a supplement I am curious as to what you think of it and if you feel that it’s helping you in any way so please share with me in the comments below.

Please share this content if you like it. Thank You!

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19 Comments

  1. Trish Cressey says:

    I read in a post that the flax seed have to be ground because they go straight through you so there is no benefit to leave them whole. I purchased a spice grinder just for doing this. My cholesterol went down and my doctor reduced my medication from 20mg to 10 mg.

    1. It makes sense that they will digest better if they are ground but I still have whole seeds on hand as well. Amazing that they had such a great effect on you!

  2. I’m so glad I found this post, I have been meaning to look up what the benefits of flax seeds are and also chia. It’s fascinating that you can use flax in place of eggs. I was going to make cornbread the other night but realized I didn’t have eggs. Do you think it would have been successful using flax? I’m not planning on making that particular recipe (cornbread with flax) a habit, but just curious. So? Maybe I missed it but I’d it the whole seeds or milled seeds that are best to use as an egg replacement?

    1. If you use flax as egg replacement definitely use the milled seeds. I never tried to make cornbread with flax, but I believe it will be very successful. If you end up making it, come back to let me know how it came out. I’m curios. Thanks for visiting!

  3. It’s remarkable to pay a visit this website and reading the views of all colleagues regarding this
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  4. Constance says:

    Will have to try the jam-flaxseed trick, too.
    I add flaxseed to my morning oats/porridge to fill me up even more.
    I just want to add that flaxseed meal supposedly doesn’t keep long before going rancid once it’s ground. That’s why I only grind a weeks amount or so in my blender.

    1. I keep both my flaxseed and my flaxseed meal in the refrigerator. I think it helps it keep longer. The meal looks fine and the taste did not change so far, but of course it is much better to grind it on the spot. A grain mill is very high on my to-buy list. Thanks for visiting.

  5. I definitely like FLAX, especially as an egg replacement, but… It tends to make me pretty bloated ๐Ÿ™

  6. Jessica | The 104 Homestead says:

    Okay, I have to admit that I never considered flax beyond giving it to my chickens as a supplement. Apparently I really need to branch out. Thank you for sharing on Green Thumb Thursday. I hope you come back and share again with us today. http://104homestead.com/topics/green-thumb-thursday/

  7. Heidi @ Pint Size Farm says:

    What a great recipe. I have always loved Flax seed – I feed it to the chickens too so there is more Omega in their eggs. Thanks for the submission to the HomeAcre blog hop. Please stop by PintSizeFarm.com and submit another post this week ๐Ÿ™‚

  8. YUM! Have you tried your smoothie with kefir and raw honey? Sounds delicious! ๐Ÿ™‚ Thanks for sharing with Wildcrafting Wednesday! ๐Ÿ™‚

    1. Never tried with kefir. Will definitely try that. Thanks.

  9. Carrie Groneman says:

    Great post and terrific tutorial! So glad I dropped by from the Green Thumb Thursday Party. Can’t wait to try your recipe. Carrie, A Mother’s Shadow

  10. Wow! I’m going to have to try that jelly thing! So interesting. I use them mostly in breakfast cookies. My kid’s favorite recipe has them.

  11. Will pin your post. Great info! We love flax seed and eat regularly the flax oil quark cheese breakfast from Dr. Budwig. Yummy and so healthy.

  12. I always throw a quarter cup of flax seeds in all my quick breads and muffins. Nice little added healthiness and never really alters the taste.

  13. One great thing about flaxseed is that is that it gels/binds when wet. We put strawberries, blueberries, blackberries (whatever is in season) in the food processor with a tablespoon or two of flaxseed & pulse until smooth(ish). I then put it in jars & freeze — Jelly! No heating up the kitchen, no sugar needed for fresh berries & a lot less expensive than other ways of making jam/jelly ๐Ÿ™‚

    1. Oh wow. Interesting. You use the whole seeds for this or the meal? Can you actually spread this on a bread like you will do with jam?

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