• Corpus ID: 1276720

High a-linolenic acid flaxseed ( Linurn usiiaiissimurn ) : some nutritional properties in humans

@inproceedings{YSTEPHEHighAA,
  title={High a-linolenic acid flaxseed ( Linurn usiiaiissimurn ) : some nutritional properties in humans},
  author={B Y S T E P H E and N C C U N N A N E and S U J A T A G A N G U L I and J A J E N K I N S and Zhen-Yu C H E N}
}

• B. Y S T E P H E, N. C. C U N N A N E, +2 authors Zhen-Yu C H E N

Although high a-linolenic acid flaxseed (Linum usitatissimum) is one of the richest dietary sources of a-linolenic acid and is also a good source of soluble fibre mucilage, it is relatively unstudied in human nutrition. Healthy female volunteers consumed 50 g ground, raw flaxseed/d for 4 weeks which provided 12-13% of energy intake (24-25 g/100 g total fat). Flaxseed raised a-linolenic acid and long-chain 12-3 fatty acids in both plasma and erythrocyte lipids, as well as raising urinary thiocyanate excretion 2.2-fold. Flaxseed also lowered serum tcital cholesterol by 9 YO and low-density-lipoprotein-cholesterol by 18 %. Changes in plasma a-linolenic acid were equivalent when 12 g a-linolenic acid/d was provided as raw flaxseed flour (50 g/d) or flaxseed oil (20 g/d) suggesting high bioavailability of a-linolenic acid from ground flaxseed. Test meals containing 50 g carbohydrate from flaxseed or 25 g flaxseed mucilage each significantly decreased postprandial blood glucose responses by 27 %. Malondialdehyde levels in muffins containing 1 5 g flaxseed oil or flour/kg were similar to those in wheat-flour muffins. Cyanogenic glycosides (hamarin, tinustatin, neolinustatin) were highest in extracted flaxseed mucilage but were not detected in baked muffins containing 150 g flaxseed/kg. We conclude that up to 50 g high-a-linolenic acid flaxseed/d is palatable, safe and may be nutritionally beneficial in humans by raising n-3 fatty acids in plasma and erythrocytes and by decreasing postprandial glucose responses. Flaxseed (Linum usitatissimunz) grown in Western Canada traditionally has a content of 2-linolenic acid (1 8 : 3n-3) > 50 g/ 100 g total fatty acids. Flaxseed oil and purified 18 : 3n-3 have been used in human studies primarily to treat overt symptoms of n-3 fatty acid deficiency, e.g. neurological and visual disturbances, scaly and haemorrhagic dermatitis, folliculitis of the scalp and growth retardation (Holman et al. 1982; Bjerve et ul. 1987a, 6 , 1989). Effects of cold-pressed flaxseed oil on serum lipids, fatty acid composition and platelet function in humans have also been reported (Owren et al. majority of these studies, large amounts of flaxseed oil (10-60 g/d) have been given, but often for 2 weeks or less (Dyerberg et al. 1980; Singer et al. 1984, 1986). 18: 3n-3 levels in serum and platelet phospholipids (PL) have generally been shown to rise with flaxseed oil supplementation. However, in only one report of healthy adults were eicosapentaenoic acid